■/V 


tu-j^j. 

»^.' 

BT  993  . 

S3 

1918 

Schenck, 

Fe 

rdinand 

Schureman, 

1845-1925. 

The  Apos 

ties'  creed 

in 

the 

twentie 

th 

centurv 

The  Apostles'  Creed  in  the 
Twentieth  Century 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2010  with  funding  from 

Princeton  Theological  Seminary  Library 


http://www.archive.org/details/apostlescreedintOOsche 


The  Apostles'  Creed  in 
the  Xwentieth  Century 


1919 


By 

FERDINAND  S.  SCHENCK,  D.  D.,  LL.  D. 

Professor  of  Preaching  and  Sociology  in  the  Theological 
Seminary  at  New  Brunswick,  N.  f. 


New  York  Chicago 

Fleming     H.     Revell     Company 

London  and  Edinburgh 


Copyright,  191 8,  by 
FLEMING  H.  REVELL  COMPANY 


New  York:  158  Fifth  Avenue 
Chicago:  17  North  Wabash  Ave. 
London  :  2 1  Paternoster  Square 
Edinburgh:      75    Princes    Street 


Preface 

THE  unknown  origin  of  the  Apostles' 
Creed  gives  it  a  peculiar  significance. 
We  trace  the  Ten  Commandments 
through  the  Scriptures  to  the  voice  of  God  on 
Mount  Sinai,  we  trace  the  Lord's  Prayer  to  the 
lips  of  Christ,  but  the  arrangement  of  the  ar- 
ticles of  the  creed  is  not  found  in  the  Scriptures. 
We  cannot  trace  the  creed  to  any  council  of  the 
Church — such  councils  simply  adopted  it  as  al- 
ready existing — nor  to  any  group  of  men — nor 
to  any  single  man.  And  there  seems  no  founda- 
tion for  the  tradition  that  the  Apostles  them- 
selves arranged  the  articles  of  their  belief. 

The  creed  seems  to  have  arisen  progressively 
in  the  early  Church  until  it  assumed  its  present 
form  as  a  spontaneous  confession  of  the  truths 
preached  by  the  Apostles  and  their  successors. 
The  real  Apostolic  Succession  is  not  only  of 
preachers  but  specially  of  preaching.  What 
would  be  the  spontaneous  confession  of  the 
whole  Church  to-day  of  the  truths  now  being 
preached  in  its  pulpits  is  a  crucial  question. 

Certainly  that  kind  of  preaching  which 
founded  and  fostered  the  early  Church  so 
markedly  is  commended   to   the  preachers  of 

5 


6  PKEFACE 

to-day.  The  proclaiming  these  basal  truths 
progressively  and  in  due  proportion  and  in  ways 
to  meet  modern  questionings  and  purposes, 
will  produce  the  faith  that  voices  itself  in  the 
creed.  There  is  a  great  craving  for  such 
preaching  in  the  souls  of  men  and  women  to- 
day— and  the  more  thoughtful  they  are  the 
greater  is  the  craving.  This  book  is  sent  forth 
with  the  lofty  design  to  foster  that  kind  of 
preaching  and  to  satisfy  that  kind  of  craving  of 
the  soul. 

F.  S.  S. 
New  Brunswick,  N.  J. 


Contents 


I.  "  I  Believe  In " 

II.  Uses  and  Abuses  of  a  Creed 

III.  "  God    the    Father    Almighty,    Maker   of 

Heaven  and  Earth  "     . 

IV.  "Jesus  Christ,  His  Only  Son,  Our  Lord"  . 

V.  "  Conceived    by  the  Holy  Ghost,  Born  of 

the  Virgin  Mary  " 

VI.  "  Suffered     Under     Pontius    Pilate,     Was 

Crucified    Dead  and   Buried  ;    He   De- 
scended Into  Hell  "     . 

VII.  "  The  Third  Day  He  Rose  from  the  Dead  " 

VIII.  "  He    Ascended    Into  Heaven,  and  Sitteth 

at  the  Right  Hand  of  God  the  Father 
Almighty  "  .... 

IX.  "  From  Thence  He  Shall  Come  to  Judge  the 

Quick  and  the  Dead  " 

X.  "  I  Believe  in  the  Holy  Ghost  " 

XI.  "  The  Holy  Catholic  Church  " 

XII.  "  The  Communion  of  Saints  "     . 

XIII.  "  The  Forgiveness  of  Sins  " 

XIV.  "The  Resurrection  of  the  Body" 

XV.  "  The  Life  Everlasting  "    . 


9 

22 

34 
48 

60 

75 
89 


114 

130 
144 

159 
172 

187 
201 


I. 


He  that  comcth  to  God  must  believe  that 
he  is  and  that  he  is  a  rewardcr  of  them  that 
seek  after  him. — Heb.  i  i  :  6. 

"  I  BELIEVE  IN " 


THE  origin  of  the  Apostles'  Creed  is  un- 
known. A  popular  tradition  assigns  it 
to  the  Apostles  themselves.  The  last 
time  they  gathered  in  Jerusalem  as  they  were 
about  to  go  into  all  the  world  to  preach  the 
Gospel  to  all  races  of  men  they  agreed  upon  the 
great  articles  of  their  message,  each  Apostle 
giving  a  single  statement  making  up  the  whole 
twelve  articles.  There  is  no  foundation  for  the 
tradition  except  in  the  number  and  character  of 
the  articles.  The  creed  as  a  whole  was  not  in 
use  earlier  than  in  the  sixth  century,  though 
various  statements  found  in  it  are  referred  to  by 
writers  before  that  time.  Since  that  time  it  has 
been  in  general  use  in  all  branches  of  the  Chris- 
tian Church,  as  it  is  now  in  the  Greek,  the 
Roman  and  the  Protestant  Churches.  It  is  fre- 
quently used  in  the  formal  worship  of  the 
Church  as  well  as  in  private  devotion,  and  is 
probably  held  in  the  memory  and  spoken  by  the 
lips  more  than  any  other  form  of  words  except 

9 


10  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

only  the  Ten  Commandments  and  the  Lord's 
Prayer. 

Before  we  consider  the  needs  and  uses  of 
such  a  creed  and  the  meaning  of  its  particular 
articles  it  will  be  well  for  us  to  give  fair  and 
close  attention  to  the  first  words,  "  I  believe  in." 
They  are  spoken  clearly:  the  tone  of  conviction, 
the  clear  eye  of  certainty,  the  willingness  to 
define  and  describe  what  one  believes,  the 
ability  to  give  good  reasons  for  what  one  be- 
lieves are  all  clearly  embraced  in  the  words. 
There  is  no  trace  of  credulity  to  be  found — of 
vagueness  or  exaggeration  or  unreason. 

When  we  glance  down  the  articles  to  find  the 
objects  of  this  belief  we  find  two  classes:  first, 
persons;  second,  conditions — or  certain  facts 
and  circumstances  of  our  lives.  These  are  evi- 
dently religious  in  their  nature.  This  then  is  a 
religious  belief.  Does  that  differ  in  essence,  in 
kind  from  ordinary  belief,  or  simply  in  its  di- 
rection to  religious  objects?  We  commonly 
use  the  word  faith  for  religious  belief — and  we 
sometimes  think  and  speak  of  faith  as  if  it 
were  a  power  different  and  distinct  from  our 
natural  powers — a  peculiar  endowment  pos- 
sessed only  by  a  selected  few.  The  Apostle 
Paul  says  "  Faith  is  the  gift  of  God."  That  is 
certainly  true  :  but  it  is  not  only  true  of  religious 
faith,  it  is  true  of  all  kinds  of  faith — that  is, it  is 
true  of  our  power  to  believe.     All  our  powers 


"  I  BELIEVE  IN  "  11 

are  gifts  of  God.  We  did  not  make  a  single 
one.  Secular  belief  is  not  a  special  kind  of 
belief  but  belief  directed  to  what  we  may  call 
secular  objects :  and  here  are  also  the  two  great 
classes,  persons,  and  conditions  or  circum- 
stances of  life.  Here  too  belief  may  have  the 
stages  of  credulity  as  well  as  in  religion — of 
vagueness,  exaggeration  and  unreason;  these 
show  the  power  to  believe  has  been  neglected 
or  abused.  So  religious  faith  is  not  a  special 
kind  of  belief  but  the  power  to  believe  directed 
to  religious  objects. 

But  what  is  this  power?  Examining  our  own 
natures,  what  is  the  power  to  believe — what  is 
embraced  in  it,  and  what  does  it  do  for  us? 

In  the  first  place  it  is  the  source  of  our  knowl- 
edge. Our  knowledge  in  any  department  is 
based  upon  sufficient  evidence.  Our  knowledge 
is  the  correspondence  of  our  thought  of  any 
particular  thing  with  the  thing  itself;  the  de- 
gree of  our  knowledge  is  in  this  correspondence ; 
is  it  full  or  only  partial?  We  say  we  know 
things  when  we  see  them.  There  is  no  belief 
in  that,  is  there?  Yes,  there  is,  the  very  high- 
est kind  of  belief.  We  believe  in  our  senses.  In 
our  sense  of  sight  confirmed  by  our  other 
senses.  When,  for  instance,  we  see  a  tree,  we 
know  it  exists,  because  we  have  seen  trees  all 
the  days  of  our  lives,  and  we  have  felt  of  them, 
climbed  them,  picked  fruit  from  them,  heard  the 


/ 


12  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

wind  blow  through  their  leaves.  We  believe 
in  our  senses,  when  we  know  trees  exist. 

Besides  the  knowledge  by  our  senses  there  is 
that  we  call  scientific  knowledge.  Much  of  this 
with  even  the  most  learned  in  such  lore  is  the 
result  of  our  belief  in  the  testimony  of  others. 
Few  of  us  have  had  opportunity  to  pursue  in- 
vestigation in  chemistry,  in  geology,  in  biology, 
but  others  have  investigated  and  we  believe 
their  statements. 

We  have  seen  but  a  few  thousand  twinkling 
stars;  but  astronomers  with  their  instruments 
and  calculations  tell  us  that  there  are  millions 
of  flashing  suns  in  the  heavens  so  large  and  so 
far  off  that  their  light  has  taken  years,  centuries, 
thousands  of  years  to  reach  us ;  and  now  we  look 
at  the  twinkling  stars,  the  flash  of  light  of  dis- 
tant suns,  and  know  the  suns  exist  because  we 
believe  the  astounding  statements  of  astrono- 
mers. So  we  at  once  recognize  that  our  knowl- 
edge of  history  and  of  other  races  of  men  and 
of  foreign  lands  is  the  result  of  our  belief  in  the 
testimony  of  historians,  of  anthropologists  and 
of  travellers. 

So  with  the  knowledge  we  have  from  our 
reason  we  compare  things  or  statements  with 
each  other  and  our  conclusions  are  wise  only  as 
we  obey  the  laws  of  logic  as  we  believe  we  have 
discovered  them.  So  we  know  our  minds  and 
these  laws  of  the  mind  exist. 


"I  BELIEVE  IN"  13 

In  the  second  place  there  is  in  belief,  espe- 
cially in  relation  to  persons  and  personal  mat- 
ters, a  power  which  we  may  call  insight. 

The  child  learns  of  the  existence  of  many 
things  through  his  senses,  the  little  world  within 
the  house,  the  wide  beautiful  world  out-of-doors 
with  its  ceaseless  changes;  but  he  is  just  as  cer- 
tain of  the  existence  of  his  mother's  love.  True, 
he  has  constant  evidences  of  this  in  his  mother's 
care  and  so  believes;  but  beyond  that  is  this 
power  we  may  call  insight;  his  love  for  his 
mother  is  itself  a  sensitive  soul  power  that 
recognizes  his  mother's  love. 

Just  so  belief  discerns  the  unseen  in  man. 
By  sight  we  discern  the  features  of  a  man's  face, 
by  insight  we  discern  the  features  of  a  man's 
character,  his  honesty,  his  justice,  his  kindli- 
ness, his  love  for  his  fellows.  As  in  the  case  of 
the  child  there  is  evidence  of  all  this  in  the  man's 
action — and  we  believe  on  evidence;  but  here 
also  is  the  power  we  call  insight.  For  there  is 
this  strange  element  in  the  knowledge  of  per- 
sons. One  must  have  something  of  the  quality 
he  recognizes  in  another  in  order  to  recognize 
it  at  all.  Personal  acquaintance,  surely  per- 
sonal friendship,  can  only  come  from  the  power 
within  us  to  recognize  and  appreciate  that  same 
power  in  another.  One  must  have  some  hon- 
esty, truthfulness,  purity,  to  recognize  these 
qualities  in  another.     This  power  finds  strong 


14  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

expression  in  that  common  phrase  in  business 
and  social  life,  I  like  that  man,  I  believe  in  that 
man.  So  also  with  reference  to  personal  mat- 
ters of  choice  and  action.  Persons  of  kindred 
views  and  feelings  combine  through  these  to 
accomplish  certain  acts.  So  we  form  parties  to 
advance  causes,  in  politics,  in  civil  reforms,  in 
national  action. 

When  we  come  to  express  this  in  strong 
terms  we  use  the  word  belief — I  believe  in  that 
party,  in  that  reform,  in  that  national  action. 
So  also  the  strength  of  a  man's  character — the 
power  of  his  insight  to  see  the  point  involved, 
the  dedication  of  his  whole  personality  to  such 
action,  is  seen  in  the  emphasis  he  places  upon 
the  chosen  phrase,  I  believe  in  that  cause.  I 
will  work  for  it,  sacrifice  for  it,  even  if  need  be 
die  for  it.     I  believe  in  it.     I  have  faith  in  it. 

In  the  third  place  belief  may  include  the  ele- 
ment of  trust,  stronger  than  that  does  in  its 
nature  include  it,  I  think,  but  in  this  case  the 
will  may  hinder  its  exercise;  so  we  may  say 
trust  comes  into  exercise  only  by  the  command 
of  the  will.  We  may  believe  a  bank  has  large 
resources  and  is  well  managed,  is  worthy  of 
trust.  But  we  do  not  trust  our  money  to  it — 
perhaps  because  we  do  not  feel  the  need  of  it — 
we  have  so  little  money;  perhaps  we  already 
have  our  little  money  in  another  bank.  The 
will  certainly  comes  into  the  question.     That 


" I  BELIEVE  IN"  15 

man  is  worthy  of  trust.  I  believe  in  him.  But 
I  do  not  need  him — or  I  prefer  to  place  my 
interests  in  another's  care — or  for  some  reason 
I  dislike  him ;  anyhow  I  do  not  trust  my  affairs 
to  him.  Or  the  reverse  is  true :  I  believe  in  him. 
I  am  in  need.  I  will  put  my  case  in  his  hands. 
We  are  very  familiar  with  this  element  of  be- 
lief. We  exercise  trust  every  day,  sometimes 
in  most  important  matters.  We  trust  our  lives 
to  the  physician — our  good  reputation  to  our 
lawyer — our  property  to  our  bank,  as  well  as 
the  multitude  of  lesser  interests.  Greater  in- 
terests still :  the  bride  at  the  altar  trusts  her 
life  and  happiness  to  the  man  she  believes  in, 
as  he  trusts  his  to  her. 

We  may  regard  belief  in  the  fourth  place  as  a 
principle  of  action.  A  man  must  believe  in 
farming,  in  mining,  in  manufacturing  in  order 
to  devote  himself  to  these  callings — to  master 
the  details,  to  make  the  best  use  of  his  powers. 
So  the  artist  in  poetry,  in  music,  in  sculpture, 
in  painting  must  believe  in  the  high  ideals  he 
holds  of  his  work  to  reach  out  patiently,  con- 
stantly, enthusiastically  to  attain  them. 

Now  to  sum  up  our  reasoning  thus  far :  we 
see  that  belief  enlarges  our  powers,  opens  the 
whole  sphere  of  knowledge,  leads  us  to  ap- 
preciate each  other,  has  the  element  of  personal 
trust  and  gives  a  principle  of  action. 

We  may  imagine  a  case  that  will  illustrate 


16  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

its  wonderful  power.  We  imagine  an  Indian 
standing  four  hundred  years  ago  on  the  shore 
of  our  country  and  looking  off  upon  the  ocean. 
His  knowledge  is  bounded  by  the  distant 
horizon;  he  may  wonder  what  is  beyond,  but 
knows  nothing.  As  he  watches  a  white  some- 
thing comes  over  the  rim  of  the  horizon.  It  is 
not  a  cloud — it  is  on  the  ocean — it  is  a  ship. 
Soon  a  little  boat  comes  from  the  strange  ship 
and  strange  men,  white  men,  come  to  him. 
They  stay  several  days,  find  means  of  communi- 
cating with  him.  They  tell  him  of  far  distant 
lands — of  great  cities,  of  a  civilized  life,  of 
strange  races  of  men. 

Now  the  white  men  leave  him.  The  ship 
sinks  beyond  the  horizon,  and  the  Indian 
stands  again  alone  upon  the  shore.  But  now 
the  horizon  bounds  his  vision  but  not  his  knowl- 
edge. He  knows  of  the  ship,  of  the  white  men, 
of  the  distant  land,  of  great  cities,  of  other  races 
of  men,  and  their  lives. 

Belief  has  given,  we  may  well  say,  broader 
views,  has  enlarged  the  horizon  of  the  mind. 

Now  we  may  further  imagine  the  white  men 
come  again  and  now  remain  with  the  Indian  a 
much  longer  time.  The  Indian  finds  he  likes 
the  white  men  the  more  he  becomes  acquainted 
with  them.  Some  powers  in  him  bind  him  to 
them ;  from  this  there  is  awakened  a  trust  in  the 
white  men,  and  this  at  length  leads  to  action. 


"I  BELIEVE  IN"  17 

The  white  men  now  get  in  their  boat  and  row 
back  to  the  ship.  They  lift  the  sails  and  the 
ship  sinks  below  the  horizon.  But  this  time 
the  Indian  goes  with  them.  He  intrusts  his 
life  to  their  care.  He  shares  their  aims  and 
purposes  and  leaves  his  old  life  for  a  new  one 
in  the  distant  lands,  in  great  cities,  among 
strange  people.  His  belief  in  the  white  men 
has  given  him  new  knowledge,  new  associa- 
tions, new  life. 

We  now  go  back  to  religious  belief  and  ask, 
What   does   the   Church   mean   by   these   first 

words  of  her  great  creed — "  I  believe  in "? 

Evidently  she  includes  all  these  elements  in  the 
power  to  believe  we  have  just  been  consider- 
ing. It  includes  belief  as  the  source  of  knowl- 
edge. The  Church,  or  the  individual  believer, 
says :  "  I  have  a  certain  knowledge  whereby  I 
hold  for  truth  all  that  God  has  revealed  to  us 
in  his  word."  The  writer  of  the  Hebrews  says  : 
"  Faith  is  the  conviction  of  things  unseen."  It 
is  always  so — in  all  affairs  as  well  as  in  religion. 
No  one  has  ever  seen  his  senses,  but  he  is  con- 
vinced they  are  true.  No  one  has  even  seen 
the  truthfulness  of  a  witness,  but  he  is  con- 
vinced of  it.  No  one  has  ever  seen  the  nobility 
of  a  friend,  but  he  is  convinced  of  it.  Faith 
sees  the  unseen,  we  say;  it  simply  is  convinced 
of  its  existence. 

We  may  easily  recognize  in  what  respect  un- 


18  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

belief  has  a  moral  fault  in  it — is  to  be  con- 
demned— not  only  in  religion,  but  in  all  direc- 
tions. It  lies  in  the  refusal  to  investigate,  to 
look  for  the  evidence,  possibly  from  indolence, 
possibly  from  dislike  for  the  subject.  There 
is  evidently  more  fault  in  the  one  case  than  in 
the  other.  One  disbelieves  in  the  attraction  of 
gravitation  or  that  the  earth  is  a  globe — we  pity 
rather  than  blame  him.  One  disbelieves  in 
honesty,  righteousness,  self-devotion  to  a  cause, 
does  not  admire  or  even  recognize  such  quali- 
ties. Such  unbelief  may  spring  from  moral 
causes;  the  impure  may  disbelieve  in  the  pure. 
There  is  always  the  ignoring  of  evidence;  there 
may  be  such  a  dislike  of  it  that  one  closes  the 
eyes  to  it,  or  even  is  unable  to  see  it. 

Now  truth  in  nature  is  disdainful  of  man's 
ignorance  or  dislike.  If  we  disbelieve  still  the 
truth  remains  unchanged.  The  captain  of  the 
big  steamship  ignores  the  chart;  his  great  ship 
runs  upon  the  rocks  just  as  surely  as  if  he  had 
designed  it  to  do  so. 

Calmly,  quietly,  the  majestic  universe  moves 
on ;  its  sequences  are  never  interrupted.  Be- 
lieve in  it  and  with  inexhaustible  generosity 
nature  rewards  belief.  Doubt  it,  disbelieve  it 
and  act  in  ignorance  or  hate,  and  with  remorse- 
less sternness  nature  punishes  disbelief. 

In  religious  matters  there  is  this  element  as 
well.     Our  text  says,  "  Without  faith  it  is  im- 


"  I  BELIEVE  IN  "  19 

possible  to  please  God:  for  he  that  cometh  to 
God  must  believe  that  he  is,  and  that  he  is  the 
rewarder  of  them  that  diligently  seek  him." 
It  is  so  always.  You  cannot  come  to  anything 
or  to  any  person  without  believing  in  that  per- 
son or  thing,  and  that  your  coming  is  worth 
while.  Belief  then  in  religion  in  the  first  place 
broadens  our  views,  enlarges  our  knowledge. 
So  in  the  second  place  there  is  insight  and  trust 
in  it.  We  are  persons  and  created  in  the  like- 
ness of  God,  and  that  likeness,  though  blurred 
by  sin,  is  not  destroyed.  There  are  in  our  na- 
ture certain  personal  powers  to  discern  certain 
personal  qualities  in  God.  There  is  also  in  our 
nature  the  power  of  personal  trust.  If  one 
recognizes  his  need  and  that  God  in  Christ  is 
willing  and  able  to  supply  that  need  the  believer 
trusts  Him.  We  do  not  cling  to  a  memory  of 
a  far-off  historical  Christ — that  is  knowledge 
and  necessary.  We  do  not  cling  to  a  marble 
statue  of  Christ,  something  we  have  constructed 
to  vivify  our  emotion.  But  we  believe  in  Christ 
as  living  and  present,  and  loving  us,  and  power- 
ful to  save,  and  we  trust  Him  as  our  personal 
Saviour.  So  the  Church,  including  each  indi- 
vidual believer,  has  all  this  in  these  first  words 

of  the  creed — "  I  believe  in "     We  believe 

in  Christ,  trust  Him  for  forgiveness  of  sin  and 
new  life  and  daily  grace.  We  place  our  per- 
sonal trust  in  our  Saviour, 


20  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

There  is  also  in  belief  the  principle  of  action. 
The  little  band  of  twelve  apostles  has  grown 
into  an  organization  of  many  millions.  As  it 
has  advanced  through  the  ages  it  has  con- 
structed splendid  edifices  for  the  worship  of 
God,  many  great  institutions  for  the  culture  of 
man,  many  agencies  of  alleviating  the  sufferings 
of  mankind  and  has  wrought  in  the  institutions 
of  society  many  beneficent  changes. 

There  was  recently  dedicated  a  monument  at 
Plymouth  in  ^honour  of  the  pilgrim  fathers. 
The  conception  enshrined  in  granite  is  worthy 
of  the  event  it  commemorates.  In  the  center 
is  a  lofty  statue  of  a  woman  representing  Faith. 
She  is  gazing  towards  the  ocean;  one  hand 
points  towards  heaven,  the  other  holds  an  open 
Bible.  Round  this  central  figure  are  four  colos- 
sal statues  representing  Morality,  Freedom, 
Education  and  Law.  This  faith  monument  at 
Plymouth  suggests  that  belief  has  been  a  prin- 
ciple of  action  in  our  land — as  it  is  to-day — and 
ministers  largely  to  our  well-being  and  welfare 
in  Morality,  Freedom,  Education  and  Law. 

Now  we  cast  a  single  glance  to  the  future  life. 

If  a  man  refuses  to  examine  the  evidences,  if 
he  does  not  believe  in  God,  nor  trust  Him,  nor 
live  in  His  service,  his  life  here  is  narrow  and 
poor  and  low.  A  vast  realm  of  knowledge  is 
closed  to  him — gives  him  no  insight,  no  trust 
in  God,  no  lofty  principle  of  action.     In  what- 


"I  BELIEVE  IN  "  21 

ever  condition  such  a  one  may  be  here  or  here- 
after he  misses  the  riches  of  belief  in  God. 

But  if  one  has  believed  in  God,  his  mind  has 
been  broadened,  his  spiritual  insight  quickened, 
his  trust  realized,  his  principle  of  action  aroused 
and  made  strong;  and  now  he  goes  into  the 
future  life.  As  the  Indian  of  our  imagination 
a  little  while  ago,  the  believer  sails  with  the  one 
he  trusts  beyond  the  horizon  to  a  new  life. 

The  requirement  of  belief  in  God  as  the  en- 
trance into  salvation  is  not  an  arbitrary  enact- 
ment. We  cannot  conceive  of  any  other  way. 
And  we  all  know  the  way  is  open  and  free  to  all 
who  will  choose  to  enter  upon  it. 


II. 

For  through  him  we  both  have  an  access 
by  one  Spirit  unto  the  Father. — Eph.  2 :  18. 

USES  AND  ABUSES  OF  A  CREED 

BEFORE  attending  to  the  particular 
articles  of  the  Apostles'  Creed  it  may  be 
well  for  us  to  consider  the  nature  and 
uses  of  a  creed  and  the  spirit  in  which  it  should 
be  held;  and  then  further  the  marked  features 
of  the  general  arrangement  of  this  special  creed. 

Some  one  has  said  that  one  does  not  know 
a  thing  or  fact  until  he  can  tell  it.  Psycholo- 
gists tell  us  that  the  mind  has  for  its  main  ob- 
ject the  adapting  the  whole  organism  to  its 
environment;  that  the  knowledge  it  receives  by 
the  senses  is  not  clear  and  full  until  it  in  some 
way  expresses  itself  in  appropriate  action. 

When  one  believes  a  truth  he  makes  it  more 
clear  to  himself  by  defining  or  describing  it,  and 
in  this  way  he  commends  it  to  the  attention  and 
acceptance  of  others. 

This  is  not  only  true  of  a  single  truth  or  fact 
but  is  emphatically  true  of  a  series  of  related 
truths.     The  nature  and  use  of  the  particular 


USES  AND  ABUSES  OF  A  CREED      23 

truth  can  be  seen  only  when  its  relation  to  other 
truths  is  recognized  and  the  nature  and  use  of 
the  whole  series  of  truths  can  be  seen  only  when 
they  are  clearly  expressed  in  their  order,  and  so 
carried  out  into  appropriate  action. 

It  is  thus  in  the  nature  of  the  human  mind  to 
have  a  creed,  and  it  applies  to  all  the  affairs  of 
life  as  well  as  to  religion.  The  one  who  learns 
a  trade  has  a  creed — the  carpenter  knows  how 
to  hit  a  nail  on  the  head.  The  difference  be- 
tween a  good  farmer  and  a  poor  one,  between 
a  successful  stock-broker  and  a  failure,  is  that 
the  one  knows  his  creed  more  fully  and  thor- 
oughly— so  thoroughly  that  he  puts  it  in  prac- 
tice quickly  and  accurately. 

It  is  so  also  with  science.  Every  text-book 
of  science  states  the  particular  truths  of  that 
science  in  their  order  and  proportion.  Our 
knowledge  of  any  department  of  nature,  as 
astronomy,  geology,  biology,  is  a  creed  of  that 
department. 

Now  it  is  quite  evident  that  the  more  clearly 
and  concisely  the  truths  of  any  department  of 
nature  can  be  stated  the  better  for  the  complete 
grasp  of  the  mind.  And  it  is  equally  obvious 
that  such  concise  statement  of  any  great  de- 
partment may  be  the  subject  of  much  needed 
elaboration. 

The  headings  of  the  chapters  of  a  book  on 
geology  will  state  the  various  geological  ages, 


24  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

and  each  chapter  will  fully  describe  each  age; 
so  in  astronomy  the  different  kinds  of  heavenly 
bodies;  so  in  biology  the  different  orders  of 
vegetable  and  animal  life.  Concise,  clear 
statements  of  truths  in  their  proper  order  and 
proportion  form  creeds  on  various  subjects.  It 
requires  clear  knowledge  and  great  care  to  pre- 
pare them.  When  well  prepared  they  are  of 
great  value,  though  they  may  require  much 
elaboration  for  their  full  understanding. 

The  Apostles'  Creed  is  therefore,  as  indi- 
cated by  its  name,  a  concise,  clear  and  compre- 
hensive statement  of  the  truths  of  religion  as 
taught  by  the  Apostles  in  the  Scriptures.  It 
was  made  in  the  far  past  by  students  of  the 
Scriptures :  by  whom  we  do  not  know.  But 
they  investigated  the  Scriptures  to  find  the 
truths;  they  arranged  the  truths  in  what  seemed 
to  them  the  proper  order  and  proportion  ac- 
cording to  the  demands  of  the  human  mind,  and 
we  have  the  result  of  their  work.  Other  creeds 
have  been  formed  since,  some  of  them  far  more 
elaborate,  especially  those  formed  in  Reforma- 
tion times. 

The  nature  of  a  creed,  therefore,  is  to  state 
the  truths  of  any  department  of  nature  and 
revelation  in  clear  terms  and  in  proper  order 
and  proportion. 

The  use  of  a  creed,  therefore,  is  to  secure  a 
higher  kind  of  knowledge  than  can  be  gathered 


USES  AND  ABUSES  OF  A  CKEED      25 

from  considering  only  isolated  truths.  Each 
truth  sheds  light  on  related  truth,  and  on  the 
harmonious  whole  in  its  completeness  and 
grandeur.  It  stimulates  the  spirit  of  investiga- 
tion; the  men  who  made  it  may  have  erred  in 
statement  or  arrangement,  and  we  are  stimu- 
lated to  go  to  their  sources  of  information  and 
find  out  for  ourselves  under  their  guidance. 
This  particular  creed  deserves  respect  and 
veneration  in  that  many  succeeding  generations 
have  thus  investigated  it  and  commended  it. 
When  we  are  stimulated  to  such  research  we 
are  following  worthy  examples. 

The  first  use  of  a  creed  is,  therefore,  to  lead 
to  wide  and  clear  knowledge.  This  particular 
creed  has  in  this  regard  great  value  from  its 
conciseness;  it  can  be  held  in  the  memory  easily 
and  is  often  repeated  with  the  voice  still  further 
fixing  it  in  the  mind. 

Our  knowledge  in  any  great  department  when 
we  contemplate  the  whole  sphere  of  truth  makes 
us  humble;  we  know  so  little  in  our  short  lives 
and  with  our  small  powers.  But  when  we  com- 
pare our  knowledge  not  with  spheres  of  truth 
but  with  that  of  our  fellow  men  it  may  make  us 
arrogant  and  arbitrary.  The  Apostle  Paul  in 
teaching  Timothy  commended  a  creed  and 
especially  taught  him  how  to  hold  it.  "  Hold 
fast  the  form  of  sound  words  in  faith  and  love 
which  is  in  Christ  Jesus."     We  are  to  hold  fast 


26  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

the  creed  we  believe  in,  but  not  arrogantly  in 
pride  over  others,  or  trying  to  force  its  adop- 
tion by  others,  or  condemning  others  for  not 
embracing  it — but  "  in  faith  and  in  love  in  Christ 
Jesus":  believing  in  Him  and  having  His 
spirit. 

A  second  use  of  a  creed,  therefore,  is  it  is  the 
heart  of  a  loving  message  to  our  fellow  men,  the 
basis  of  Christian  teaching.  The  believer  re- 
citing the  creed  in  worship — the  Church  in 
adopting  the  creed  proclaims  and  commends  it 
to  the  world.  It  virtually  says  we  have  re- 
ceived this  statement  after  due  investigation. 
We  commend  it  to  you  as  a  clear,  concise  and 
comprehensive  statement  of  truths  of  vast  im- 
portance, the  truths  of  religion.  Investigate 
them,  and  accept  them  as  far  as  our  testimony 
will  help  you,  and  come  thereby  into  the  fellow- 
ship of  believers  and  advocates.  Our  doors, 
our  hearts  are  not  only  open,  but  have  a  great 
welcome  for  all. 

It  is  a  great  abuse  of  a  creed  when  it  is  relied 
upon  as  having  authority  in  itself;  it  is  only  a 
guide  in  the  study  of  Scripture  commended  by 
an  honoured  course  of  such  study;  it  is  a  great 
abuse  when  it  fosters  bigotry  and  intolerance, 
when  it  frowns  upon  candid  investigation,  when 
it  crushes  freedom  of  thought.  It  should  al- 
ways lead  to  the  investigation  of  nature  and  the 
Scriptures;  it  should  always  lead  to  the  love  of 


USES  AND  ABUSES  OF  A  CREED      27 

mankind,  to  persuading  men  to  be  seekers  of 
God  to  their  highest  welfare. 

The  first  and  second  great  uses  of  a  creed  are 
thus  pervaded  by  the  third,  which  cannot  be 
separated  from  them  except  as  we  may  hold  it 
before  our  thought.  It  is  not  only  to  foster 
knowledge  and  keep  it  as  free  as  possible  from 
error,  it  is  not  only  to  give  a  clear  message,  a 
proclamation  to  the  world,  but  it  is  to  foster  an 
experience  of  its  truths  and  so  to  promote  a  life. 
Creeds  in  other  departments  are  to  lead  to 
action.  Surely  a  creed  in  religion  is  dead  indeed 
unless  it  promotes  life;  it  must  live  in  the  be- 
liever and  so  preach  in  his  life  as  well  as  in  his 
words. 

Truths  not  merely  defined  and  described  as 
knowledge  and  proclaimed  in  words  but  ex- 
perienced, influencing  the  depths  of  our  nature, 
swaying  our  souls  and  lived  out  in  loving  lives 
before  the  world,  these  form  our  creed — this  it 
is  to  believe,  to  have  faith.  Faith  believes  on 
sufficient  evidence,  is  the  insight  in  personal 
matters,  has  personal  trust  and  becomes  thus  a 
principle  of  action ;  this  faith  has  for  its  objects 
persons  and  conditions,  as  we  see  at  a  glance  at 
the  particular  articles  of  this  creed;  and  we  can 
only  reach  the  uses  of  a  creed  when  it  sways 
our  lives. 

Thus  the  Apostles'  Creed  is  an  inheritance 
from  the  past;  it  sways  the  life  of  the  present 


28  THE  APOSTLES'  CKEED 

and  so  is  proclaimed  to  the  world,  and  thus  it 
is  handed  down  as  a  rich  treasure  to  future 
generations. 

Let  us  now  consider  the  marked  feature  of 
the  general  arrangement  of  the  Apostles'  Creed. 
A  single  glance  at  the  whole  creed  shows  there 
are  three  Persons  the  objects  of  our  belief,  and 
that  each  Person  is  the  source  of  special  con- 
ditions of  our  lives :  the  Father,  of  our  creation, 
the  Son,  of  our  redemption,  the  Holy  Spirit,  of 
our  sanctification;  and  still  it  is  quite  evident 
the  creed  does  not  speak  of  three  Gods  but  em- 
phatically of  the  one  only  true  and  eternal  God. 

The  way  in  which  we  are  to  believe  in  each 
of  these  three  Persons  and  of  their  acts  towards 
us  will  be  considered  fully  as  we  pass  along  the 
articles  of  the  creed.  We  have  now  to  consider 
what  is  called  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity — that 
there  are  three  persons  in  the  unity  of  God.  As 
the  creed  leads  to  the  investigation  of  Scripture 
we  ask,  How  does  the  Scripture  present  this 
doctrine?  In  the  first  place  it  is  very  emphatic 
that  there  is  but  one  God.  Jesus  Christ  sums 
up  the  teaching  of  the  Scripture  when  He  says, 
"  The  first  of  all  the  commandments  is,  Hear  O 
Israel,  the  Lord  our  God  is  one  Lord."  Just 
as  emphatically  Jesus  also  speaks  of  two  per- 
sons when  He  says,  "  I  and  the  Father  are  one," 
"  The  Father  is  in  me  and  I  in  the  Father." 
Just  as  clearly  Jesus  also  speaks  of  three  persons 


USES  AND  ABUSES  OF  A  CREED      29 

when  He  says,  "  The  Holy  Spirit,  whom  the 
Father  will  send  in  my  name,  he  shall  teach  you 
all  things  and  bring  to  your  remembrance  all 
that  I  said  unto  you." 

The  Church  in  all  the  ages  has  kept  this  truth 
prominent  in  her  worship  when  she  uses  the 
formula  of  baptism  Christ  gave  her  as  stated  in 
the  last  chapter  of  Matthew's  Gospel,  and  in  her 
use  of  the  Apostolic  Benediction  written  by  Paul 
in  the  last  chapter  of  the  Second  Epistle  to  the 
Corinthians. 

In  the  one  God  then,  according  to  the  teach- 
ing of  the  Scriptures,  especially  according  to  the 
teaching  of  Jesus  Christ,  there  are  three  per- 
sons— that  is,  there  are  three  distinctions  which 
are  spoken  of  and  which  act  and  speak  of  them- 
selves, as  persons. 

When  we  speak  of  a  person  we  mean  an  in- 
telligent conscious  being  independent  in  ex- 
istence and  action  of  all  other  such  beings  but 
in  close  relations  with  them.  We  may  be  sure 
the  Scripture  does  not  contradict  itself,  also 
that  it  no  more  requires  us  to  believe  what  is 
absurd  than  to  do  what  is  sinful.  God  is  not 
one  Person  and  three  Persons  in  the  same  sense. 
We  may  say  with  assurance  that  the  distinctions 
in  the  divine  nature  which  act  and  speak  of 
themselves  as  persons  are  not  limited  by  our 
idea  of  personality  formed  from  our  small  ex- 
perience, and  that  they  in  no  sense  conflict  with 


30  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

the  unity  of  God,  the  Person.  Much  thought 
has  been  given  to  this  great  subject  through  the 
ages,  many  definitions  and  distinctions  have 
been  made  and  even  great  controversy  has  been 
awakened,  but  little  advance  has  been  made. 
We  are  in  the  face  of  the  mystery  of  existence. 
We  cannot  comprehend  the  mystery  of  our  own 
little  existence;  surely  we  are  not  able  to  com- 
prehend the  mystery  of  God's  existence.  In 
nature  we  are  assured  of  the  existence  of  God 
by  His  works,  but  the  manner  of  His  existence 
is  but  dimly  seen.  Having  the  revelation  of 
this  Trinity  in  the  Scripture  we  may  look  again 
at  His  works  in  nature  and  see  that  they  give 
some  intimations  of  this  mode  of  His  existence. 
The  sun  gives  forth  three  powers  in  one — light, 
heat  and  electricity.  The  matter  of  sun  and 
earth,  of  the  wide  universe,  is  bound  in  one  by 
the  atom,  the  force  and  the  law.  Our  own  be- 
ing is  threefold — physical,  mental  and  moral: 
body,  mind  and  soul  may  each  use  the  word 
person. 

But  the  mode  of  God's  existence  can  be  only 
made  known  by  Himself,  in  nature  dimly  and 
if  He  chooses  more  fully  in  revelation.  He 
has  been  pleased  to  reveal  Himself  in  the  Scrip- 
tures with  special  reference  to  the  salvation  of 
man  from  sin;  and  the  revelation  of  the  Trinity 
is  at  once  seen  to  have  special  interest  in  man's 
salvation. 


USES  AND  ABUSES  OF  A  CREED      31 

It  is  not  only  to  widen  our  mental  horizon, 
to  increase  our  knowledge  of  God,  but  it  is 
specially  to  enlighten  and  enliven  our  souls  in 
the  experience  of  salvation  in  the  full  revelation 
of  the  Father  through  the  Son  by  the  Holy 
Spirit.  Our  text  sets  forth  the  result.  All 
mankind,  divided  before  by  the  presence  or  ab- 
sence of  a  special  revelation  into  two  great 
classes,  are  now  to  receive  the  revelation  in 
Jesus  Christ,  and  so  both  Jew  and  Gentile  have 
access  through  Christ  by  the  Spirit  to  the 
Father. 

We  are  alienated  from  God,  the  Father,  by 
our  sins;  we  have  arrayed  His  righteousness 
against  our  sins,  and  cannot  in  ourselves  satisfy 
it;  we  have  marred  His  image  in  our  nature  and 
we  cannot  restore  it. 

God  the  Father  has  given  us  His  Son  to  save 
us  from  our  sins.  Jesus  Christ  our  Divine  Re- 
deemer has  satisfied  the  claims  of  righteousness 
against  us,  and  by  His  righteousness  has  pro- 
vided new  life  for  us.  God,  the  Holy  Spirit, 
sent  of  the  Father  and  the  Son,  teaches  us  the 
way  of  salvation  and  conforms  us  in  faith  and 
holy  living  to  Christ.  So  we  have  access  to  the 
Father  by  Jesus  Christ  through  the  Holy  Spirit. 

The  creed  leads  us,  as  do  the  Scriptures,  not 
to  arrogance  and  pride  and  intolerance,  but  to 
humility,  reverence  and  faith. 

We  are  to  learn  as  much  as  we  can  of  the 


32  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

nature  of  God;  but  we  should  always  recognize 
that  we  can  never  fully  comprehend  Him.  Our 
minds  will  be  developed  throughout  eternity  as 
we  contemplate  Him  in  His  wonderful  works, 
but  we  probably  will  never  fully  comprehend 
the  mystery  of  His  existence.  He  will  ever 
lead  us  on  in  knowledge,  in  the  development  of 
all  our  powers,  but  He  will  always  be  in  the 
lead.  There  will  always  be  for  us  the  honour 
of  learning  and  the  duty  of  reverence — the 
privilege  of  looking,  of  gazing  and  adoring. 

The  creed  leads  us,  as  do  the  Scriptures,  to 
learn  now  of  God,  of  His  nature  and  His  works, 
all  we  need  for  our  full  salvation ;  and  this 
knowledge  on  sufficient  evidence  leads  us  to  an 
insight  of  His  character  and  to  a  trust  in  Him 
and  obedience  to  Him  which  is  our  salvation. 
A  mere  intellectual  acceptance  of  creed  or 
Scripture  will  not  suffice.  We  are  to  know,  in 
order  to  love  and  trust  and  obey,  the  one  only 
true  and  eternal  God,  the  God  of  our  salvation. 

The  Scripture  declares,  "  Believe  in  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  and  thou  shalt  be  saved."  Is  not 
this  creed  enough?  What  the  smallest  quan- 
tity of  knowledge  of  Jesus  Christ  may  be  enough 
to  lead  one  to  trust  Him,  we  need  not  ask. 
Certainly  the  Scriptures  present  Him  fully  for 
our  faith.  Surely  it  is  desirable  we  should  know 
all  that  it  is  possible  to  know  of  Him,  that  we 
may    be    His    intelligent    followers,    and    may 


USES  AND  ABUSES  OF  A  CREED     33 

rightly  commend  Him  to  others;  and  the  more 
we  know  the  more  fully  we  should  live  in  fellow- 
ship with  Him.  So  we  are  incited  by  the  creed, 
as  we  follow  its  articles,  to  a  greater  knowledge 
of  the  wonderful  work  of  each  of  the  three  Per- 
sons of  the  Godhead  in  giving  us  salvation  and 
so  to  the  experience  of  the  love  of  God  in 
Father,  Son  and  Holy  Ghost. 


III. 

Go  unto  my  brethren  and  say  to  them, 
I  ascend  unto  my  Father  and  your  Father 
and  my  God  and  your  God. — John  20:  17. 

"  GOD  THE  FATHER  ALMIGHTY,  MAKER 
OF  HEAVEN  AND  EARTH  " 

WE  are  wonderful  beings;  the  more  we 
contemplate  ourselves  the  more  the 
wonder  grows.  We  are  conscious  of 
thinking,  feeling,  willing,  that  we  are  persons; 
we  remember  a  long  past,  a  personal  past;  we 
plan  for  an  uncertain  but  hoped-for  future — a 
personal  future.  Now  we  look  out  upon  the 
earth  and  the  sky,  wonderful  in  themselves  at 
the  first  thoughtful  look,  and  the  more  steadily 
and  intently  we  look  the  more  the  wonder 
grows. 

The  earth  and  the  sky  have  had  a  long  past; 
we  read  it,  but  it  is  not  a  personal  past.  The 
earth  and  sky,  the  more  intently  we  look,  have 
a  wonderful  order  and  arrangement,  but  they 
show  no  signs  of  intelligence,  feeling,  willing, 
that  they  are  arranging  themselves.  The  earth 
and  sky  have  an  uncertain  future;  the  present 
evidently  prepares  for  it,  we  may  anticipate  it, 

34 


"  GOD  THE  FATHER  ALMIGHTY  "  35 

but  it  is  not  a  personal  future.  We  persons 
are  in  wonderful  union  and  dependence  upon 
our  impersonal  surroundings.  We  find  our 
bodies  are  made  of  the  same  stuff  that  earth 
and  distant  stars  are  made  of,  only  we  can 
think  and  feel  and  will,  and  they  cannot. 

The  universe — one  system,  one  history,  one 
future — what  a  wonderful  thing  it  is!  We  too 
are  a  part  of  it,  one  with  it:  only  we  have  a 
wonderful  personality,  and  we  find  nothing  like 
this  in  the  rest  of  the  universe. 

How  did  the  universe,  including  ourselves, 
come  to  be — come  into  existence?  How  is  it, 
including  ourselves,  maintained  and  governed 
in  such  splendid  order?  What  will  be  its  future, 
including  ourselves?  What  wonderful  ques- 
tions, how  hard  to  answer!  And  yet  we  must 
ask  them,  because  we  are  persons.  We  would 
not  be  persons,  would  not  be  thinking,  feeling, 
willing  beings  if  we  did  not  ask  them.  It  is  in 
our  nature  to  ask  them.  Man  as  an  intelligent 
person  must  ask  these  questions.  Is  there  any 
answer?  The  Apostles'  Creed  replies:  I  believe 
in  God,  the  Father  Almighty,  maker  of  heaven 
and  earth. 

Does  this  reply  commend  itself  to  our  reason? 
Other  replies  have  been  given.  Men,  as  they 
have  advanced  from  savagery  through  barba- 
rism to  some  high  degrees  of  civilization,  have 
believed  in  many  gods  of  varied  and  often  con- 


36  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

flicting  characters:  but  an  appreciation  of  the 
oneness  of  the  system  we  call  the  universe  has 
set  aside  such  answers.  Some  have  thought 
that  the  universe  itself  is  God — that  it  accounts 
for  itself — by  chance,  by  materialism  or  by 
pantheism;  but  no  consciousness  of  personality 
can  be  seen  in  it,  outside  ourselves,  and  we 
know  we  are  not  God  in  any  sense.  Some  have 
said  we  can  never  find  out  the  answer,  we  have 
no  powers  of  knowing.  We  may  not  be  able  to 
know  all  about  God,  but  the  insistence  of  the 
question  in  our  intelligent  personality  implies 
there  will  be  found  a  reasonable  answer.  Some 
have  said,  There  must  be  a  God,  the  maker  of 
all  things,  but  He  has  no  longer  any  interest  in 
them,  any  control  over  them.  This  seems  to  be 
inconsistent  with  the  needed  intelligence  of  such 
a  personal  maker  of  the  vast  universe,  including 
ourselves,  persons. 

Now  as  we  look  again  carefully,  intently  at 
our  surroundings,  the  universe  outside  our- 
selves, there  is  such  a  marvellous  harmony  and 
order  in  it,  such  a  marvellous  combination  of 
forces  and  materials  in  one  harmonious  system, 
such  stately  order,  such  striking  beauty,  such 
marvellous  usefulness  in  many  directions  that 
it  begins  to  assume  the  nature  of  a  message  to 
us,  to  have  a  strange  resemblance  to  a  book  that 
we  are  to  learn  to  read  and  to  follow. 

This  makes  science  possible.     It  investigates 


"GOD  THE  FATHEK  ALMIGHTY"     37 

the  various  departments  of  nature,  classifies  the 
facts  it  discovers,  forms  theories  as  to  the  means 
that  have  brought  them  about;  in  other  words 
it  tries  to  read  the  message,  and  to  turn  its 
knowledge  into  practical  channels  of  usefulness. 
Scientists  strive  faithfully  to  find  the  truth  in 
the  message;  all  honour  to  such  earnest 
searchers  for  truth;  but  some  do  not  attend  to 
the  natural  inference  that  a  message  comes 
from  one  mind  to  another,  that  a  book  implies 
an  author  as  well  as  a  reader.  Other  scientists 
adoringly  acknowledge  that  they  are  simply 
trying  to  read  the  thoughts  of  God  after  Him, 
trying  to  read  His  message  to  them. 

When  we,  as  directed  by  the  Apostles'  Creed, 
turn  to  investigate  the  Scriptures  we  find  they 
teach  from  beginning  to  end  the  existence  of 
one  "  God  the  Father  Almighty,  maker  of 
heaven  and  earth." 

The  two  books,  that  of  nature  and  that  of  the 
Scriptures,  speak  to  our  questioning  minds  the 
same  message:  God  exists,  our  Father.  Some- 
times these  two  readers,  Science  and  Religion, 
have  been  intolerant  of  each  other;  this  is  not 
because  the  two  books  are  in  any  sense  con- 
flicting— they  come  from  one  author — but  be- 
cause the  readers  have  had  but  small  knowledge, 
and  each  proud  of  the  little  knowledge  he 
possessed  was  contemptuous  of  the  little  knowl- 
edge of  the  other. 


38  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

The  day  of  this  conflict  has  almost  passed 
away,  very  little  of  it  remains,  and  it  passes 
because  the  narrowness  of  knowledge  is  passing 
with  its  misunderstandings  and  errors. 

Religion  looks  up  into  the  blue  sky  on  a  clear 
day  and  says  how  beautiful  God  has  made  the 
heavens.  Science  says  the  sky  is  blue  because 
the  cosmic  dust  filling  the  air  transmits  all  other 
rays  and  reflects  only  the  blue  rays  of  the  sun- 
light, and  thus  she  sees  the  way  in  which  God 
has,  through  the  ages,  made  the  heavens  beauti- 
ful. 

Science  was  intolerant  of  the  six  days  of 
creation  described  in  the  first  chapter  of  Gene- 
sis because  it  thought  the  days  were  of  twenty- 
four  hours.  Since  it  has  learned  that  day  in 
Scripture  means  a  vast  period — as  the  day  of 
creation,  the  day  of  God's  rest,  the  day  of  judg- 
ment, the  day  of  grace,  and  since  it  has  seen  in 
that  chapter  the  same  vast  succession  of  creative 
acts  it  is  studying  in  astronomy,  geology  and 
biology  narrated  in  the  same  order  as  it  finds 
written  in  the  heavens  and  the  earth,  intoler- 
ance has  given  place  to  adoration. 

Religion  was  intolerant  of  the  immense 
periods  of  unfolding  changes  in  the  earth  as 
indicated  in  the  stratification  of  the  rocks  and 
of  the  vast  periods  of  the  evolution  of  forms 
of  life  upon  its  surface.  But  we  have  learned 
that  the  farther  back  we  go  and  the  greater 


"  GOD  THE  FATHER  ALMIGHTY  "   39 

the  number  of  changes  one  takes  in  view  the 
more  a  great  deal  does  the  mind  observing  these 
learn  the  far-reaching  plans  of  the  great  maker 
of  heaven  and  the  earth. 

Thus  Religion  and  Science  are  sisters  study- 
ing and  admiring  together  the  works  of  their 
heavenly  Father.  They  look  back  through 
immense  periods  of  time  and  see  the  cosmic 
light  dawning  from  condensing  star  dust,  as 
God  said,  "  Let  there  be  light."  They  see  this 
little  globe  of  the  earth  forming  into  shape  and 
the  gases  and  water  and  land  coming  into 
proper  proportions. 

Dead  matter  being  prepared  for  its  dwelling 
place  the  command  of  God  brings  vegetable  life 
into  existence;  this  life  did  not  come  from  the 
matter  but  from  the  great  Life-Giver.  After 
long  succession  of  abundant  vegetation  the  air 
was  so  cleared  of  gases  that  sun,  moon  and 
stars  could  be  seen  and  that  present  day  move- 
ments prevailed.  Thus  when  the  atmosphere 
was  prepared  animal  life  in  water  and  air  was 
introduced,  not  from  dead  matter,  not  from 
vegetable  life  even,  but  from  the  great  Life- 
Giver.  After  long  succession  of  many  forms 
of  life,  some  now  extinct,  but  whose  vestiges 
are  found  in  the  stratification  of  the  earth,  God 
created  man — a  race  distinct  from  all  other 
races  of  life,  though  related  to  them  as  from 
the  dust  of  the  earth,  but  having  distinctively 


40  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

the  likeness,  the  image  of  the  great  Life- 
Giver. 

Thus  man  comes  into  existence  at  length  in 
the  plan  and  work  of  God,  man  the  person,  the 
thinking,  feeling,  willing  being  who  can  thus 
read  the  book  God  has  written.  Thus  Religion 
and  Science  vie  with  each  other  in  studying  the 
works  and  word  of  God  and  in  adoring  Him. 
Science  is  becoming  more  and  more  religious, 
and  Religion  is  becoming  more  and  more  scien- 
tific. Man  the  wonderful  person  becomes  more 
wonderful  as  he  learns  of  and  adores  "  God  the 
Father  Almighty,  maker  of  heaven  and  earth." 

For  there  is  also  this  feature  of  our  nature  as 
persons  that  we  not  only  have  to  ask  how  the 
universe  came  into  existence,  a  mere  intellectual 
question  perhaps,  but  we  have  feeling  and  will, 
and  our  whole  nature  craves  another  person, 
with  whom  we  may  have  fellowship.  As  per- 
sons we  are  children  of  a  great  Father  and  the 
highest  powers  of  our  nature  cannot  be  satisfied 
except  as  we  find  Him. 

The  revelation  of  God  in  the  Scriptures 
awakens  and  satisfies  this  craving.  The  crav- 
ing may  lie  dormant  in  the  savage — it  may  stir 
as  if  about  to  awaken  in  the  advance  through 
barbarism  to  civilization,  and  men  only  become 
conscious  of  their  brotherhood  to  each  other  as 
they  dimly  recognize  God  as  their  Father. 
When  Jesus  Christ,  the  full  revelation  of  God, 


"  GOD  THE  FATHER  ALMIGHTY  "  41 

comes  in  touch  with  the  souls  of  men  He  gives 
them  power  to  become  the  sons  of  God.  He 
awakens  fully  the  likeness  of  God  in  the  soul, 
takes  away  all  the  barriers  that  separate  the 
soul  from  God  and  we  wonderful  persons  be- 
come more  wonderful  as  we  are  inspired  by  our 
Saviour  to  think  the  thoughts,  feel  the  feelings 
and  choose  the  choices  of  God,  and  so  have  true 
fellowship  with  our  Father  in  heaven. 

Now  not  only  has  God  made  but  He  main- 
tains and  rules  the  heaven  and  the  earth.  The 
teaching  of  Christ  is  remarkable  in  that  it  brings 
God  near  to  us,  declares  Him  present  and  acting 
in  all  our  surroundings  and  in  our  lives.  In  our 
limited  use  of  language,  dependent  alone  on  our 
experience,  we  have  made  use  of  two  words — 
Creation  and  Providence.  We  are  makers  of 
things  and  we  speak  of  God  as  the  maker  of  all 
things.  But  why  do  we  make  things?  to  throw 
them  aside?  Alas,  yes,  too  often,  as  we  are 
ignorant  and  trifling  and  often  failures.  But 
generally  we  make  things  for  purposes  we 
choose.  We  foresee,  we  provide  for  the  future, 
we  have  a  plan  and  end  in  view.  Now  with 
reference  to  the  universe,  including  ourselves, 
we  are  certain,  since  in  order  to  make  such  a 
universe  God  must  be  all  powerful,  all  wise,  and 
all  good.  He  did  not  make  it  to  throw  it 
aside — He  had  a  pla  1  and  end  in  view.  He  is 
the  God  of  creation  and  of  Providence.     We 


42  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

persons  look  upon  ourselves  and  upon  our  sur- 
roundings and  read  the  thought,  the  feeling  and 
the  will  of  God  not  only  in  what  He  has  done 
but  in  what  He  is  doing  now,  and  in  what  He 
will  do  in  the  future.  God  has  a  grand  design, 
an  end  in  view  with  reference  to  the  great  uni- 
verse; this  includes  of  course  many  particular 
ends  tending  towards  it,  and  He  employs  means 
to  accomplish  the  particular  and  the  general 
ends,  and  in  all  He  is  infinitely  powerful,  wise 
and  good. 

We  call  this  the  Providence  of  God,  the  main- 
taining and  governing  the  universe  to  attain  the 
designed  end. 

And  now  as  we  look  again  and  more  intently 
at  our  surroundings  and  upon  ourselves  there 
arise  at  least  three  questions  that  greatly  per- 
plex us.  Of  course  we  can  silence  them  by  say- 
ing that  we  cannot  hope  to  find  the  full  answer 
to  them  in  this  stage  of  our  existence,  nor  until 
God's  plan  is  fully  accomplished  and  the  end  He 
designed  for  the  universe  is  at  length  realized 
and  clearly  seen  by  us.  But  we  cannot  think 
that  God  would  have  us  thus  stifle  our  ques- 
tions; rather  we  feel  He  may  be  culturing  our 
powers  of  thinking  and  our  faith  in  Him  by  our 
trying  to  find  some  'satisfactory  answers  to 
them. 

The  first  question  is,  Does  God's  providence 
extend  to  the  general  outlines  and  to  the  great 


"GOD  THE  FATHER  ALMIGHTY  "     43 

results  only,  or  does  it  include  the  small  and 
subordinate  things  and  persons  as  well?  Is  it 
only  a  universal  or  is  it  a  particular  Providence 
as  well? 

When  we  think  of  our  own  plans  we  recog- 
nize that  unless  due  attention  is  paid  to  the 
small  details  the  general  plan  is  apt  to  fail.  But 
in  the  universe  there  are  so  many  apparently 
insignificant  things.  The  spheres  of  existence 
in  the  heavens  above  us  revealed  by  the  tele- 
scope, the  spectroscope,  stellar  photography  in 
systems  and  galaxies  of  distant  suns — all  move 
in  complete  order  and  harmony.  Surely  the 
providence  of  God  maintains  and  governs  the 
heavens  above  us.  Now  we  look  within  and  be- 
neath our  own  being  and  the  microscope  reveals 
spheres  of  existence  of  the  infinitely  small. 
God  maintains  and  governs  the  stars — does  He 
maintain  and  govern  microbes  and  insects  in- 
visible to  the  naked  eye  as  well?  Now  we  re- 
flect still  further  and  see  that  atoms  and  force 
and  law,  the  little  as  well  as  the  great,  are  in 
the  stars  as  well  as  in  the  insects.  The  great 
and  the  small  are  inseparably  linked  together. 
Nothing  is  too  great  for  His  control.  Nothing 
is  too  small  for  His  notice.  And  we  begin  to 
see  that  Jesus  Christ  stated  a  scientific  truth 
when  He  said,  "  Not  a  sparrow  falls  on  the 
ground  without  your  Father;  the  very  hairs  of 
your  head  are  all  numbered." 


44  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

When  we  look  upon  the  history  of  the  race 
of  man  we  see  the  vast  influence  of  the  seem- 
ingly insignificant  upon  great  movements. 
The  wave  of  the  hand  of  a  savage  sends  the 
great  discoverer  to  the  south  and  Spanish 
civilization  takes  possession  of  South  America, 
while  North  America  is  given  to  the  Anglo- 
Saxon.  The  nod  of  the  head  of  an  ignorant 
peasant  led  Napoleon  to  order  the  charge  which 
defeated  him  at  Waterloo. 

We  turn  to  the  Scriptures  and  the  fate  of 
Joseph  is  decided  by  a  passing  caravan  going 
down  into  Egypt.  Later  on,  David  hides  from 
Saul  in  the  depths  of  a  cave.  Saul  and  his  men, 
pursuing  and  wearied,  come  to  the  cave  and  fall 
asleep  in  the  cool  entrance.  David  and  his  men, 
watchful,  pass  out  over  their  sleeping  foes. 
The  caravan  happens  to  pass  and  events  follow, 
leading  up  to  the  giving  of  the  Ten  Command- 
ments on  Sinai.  Saul  falls  asleep  and  events 
follow,  leading  to  the  great  Son  of  David,  the 
Cross  and  the  Resurrection.  No  individual  or 
event  is  isolated  or  neglected.  However  small, 
we  are  under  the  care  of  God.  Every  thought- 
ful man  must  recognize  in  his  individual  life  that 
great  changes  are  wrought  by  small  events,  and 
that  beyond  his  care  there  is  One  who  cares  for 
him.  The  belief  in  providence  should  lead  each 
one  of  us  to  at  least  thank  God  every  morning 
that  we  were  born  in  a  Christian  land. 


"  GOD  THE  FATHER  ALMIGHTY  "  45 

Now  the  second  question  arises,  Does  not 
God  maintain  and  govern  the  universe  by  law, 
and  so  is  not  all  His  care  of  the  little  and  the 
great  confined  to  the  working  of  universal  law, 
and  so  can  there  be  any  feature  of  what  we  call 
personal  care  of  either  single  events  or  of  in- 
dividual lives? 

We  who  are  trying  to  think  the  thoughts  of 
God  after  Him  must  be  filled  with  astonish- 
ment at  the  universal  sway  of  law.  We  who 
are  trying  to  feel  and  will  like  God  must  recog- 
nize at  once  that  our  part  is  to  discover  and 
obey  His  law.  We  recognize  that  God's  laws 
are  for  the  good  of  His  creatures  and  that  their 
well-being  can  only  be  secured  by  their  obedi- 
ence to  them.  So  we  try  to  obey  the  law  of 
gravitation  as  we  walk,  the  law  of  breathing  as 
we  seek  pure  air,  the  law  of  digestion  as  we  eat 
wholesome  food,  and  so  all  the  laws  of  health  of 
body,  mind  and  soul,  as  we  discover  them. 

In  these  laws  for  our  good  God  has  a  per- 
sonal care  for  each  one  of  us.  Just  as  one  of 
you  who  is  a  father  may  make  general  rules  for 
and  exercise  a  general  oversight  of  your  fam- 
ily and  still  have  a  deep  personal  care  of  each 
of  your  children. 

But  while  we  are  limited  on  our  part  to 
honour  law  by  seeking  to  learn  and  obey  it,  we 
are  not  to  limit  God  to  His  laws  as  we  under- 
stand them.     We  even,  as  we  are  on  the  outside 


46  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

of  law  and  so  limited  to  discovery  and  obedi- 
ence, may  work  our  special  will  in  many  an 
instance  by  combination  and  arrangement.  We 
combine  the  law  of  gravitation  and  the  law  of 
the  expansion  of  steam  and  by  constructing 
machinery  to  run  on  rails  we  send  the  heavy 
train  of  cars  from  city  to  city,  carrying  many 
passengers  in  comfort  and  safety.  God  knows 
more  laws  than  we  do  and  can  combine  their 
infinite  complexity.  And  He  acts  from  the  in- 
side of  nature  while  we  act  only  from  the  out- 
side. And  so  it  is  at  least  conceivable  that 
without  setting  aside  or  breaking  a  single  law 
He  may  work  His  personal  care  over  particular 
events  and  individual  lives. 

The  only  question  then  is,  Will  He  so  act? 
If  this  is  involved  in  His  promise  to  answer 
prayer  in  some  special  case,  or  if  it  is  involved 
in  His  promse,  "  I  will  never  leave  thee  nor 
forsake  thee,"  in  some  special  case  we  may  be 
sure  He  will  so  act. 

The  last  of  the  three  perplexing  questions 
now  demands  our  notice.  Why  does  God  per- 
mit sin  in  His  maintaining  and  governing  the 
universe?  We  can  only  say  now  that  the  re- 
maining articles  of  the  creed  will  throw  great 
light  upon  that  question  as  we  consider  all  He 
does  to  overrule  and  save  from  sin.  He  has 
made  us  free  moral  beings.  We  have  chosen  to 
break  moral  laws;  it  was  permitted  in  the  very 


"  GOD  THE  FATHER  ALMIGHTY  "   47 

nature  of  our  freedom.  God  governs  us  as  free 
moral  agents.  He  uses  His  providence,  as  we 
can  easily  see,  to  punish,  to  check,  to  prevent 
sin  in  many  forms  and  courses.  We  sinners  are 
still  under  the  government  of  the  holy  God;  we 
have  not  passed  beyond  His  care.  His  deal- 
ings with  us  become  a  strong  appeal  to  us  to 
turn  from  sin.  So  through  His  providence  has 
come  to  us  the  gift  of  His  Son,  to  be  our  Re- 
deemer, our  Saviour  from  sin. 

Trusting  in  Him  we  may  have  the  utmost 
confidence  that  He  will  provide  all  things  neces- 
sary for  soul  and  body  and  that  He  will  over- 
rule all  evil  for  our  good.  He  is  able,  He  is 
willing,  He  is  faithful,  for  He  is  our  loving 
Father  in  Christ,  as  He  is  the  Almighty  Father 
of  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord. 


IV. 

Thou  shalt  call  his  name  Jesus:  for  it  is  he 
that  shall  save  his  people  from  their  sins. 
Thou  art  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living 
God. — Matt.  1:21;  16:16. 

"  JESUS  CHRIST,  HIS  ONLY  SON, 
OUR  LORD" 

SIX  of  the  twelve  articles  of  the  Apostles' 
Creed  are  devoted  to  Jesus  Christ  and 
His  works.  This  first  article  mentions 
His  name,  calls  Him  the  only  begotten  Son  of 
God,  the  Father,  and  acknowledges  Him  as  our 
Lord. 

Names  are  given  men  to  distinguish  one  from 
another;  it  is  hard  to  distinguish  the  absent  in 
any  other  way.  In  early  ages  what  we  now 
call  the  first  or  given  name  was  generally  used 
and  frequently  combined  with  the  father's  first 
name  or  that  of  the  place  of  residence.  So 
we  read  of  Jesus,  the  son  of  Joseph,  or  of 
Jesus  of  Nazareth.  It  is  interesting  to  trace 
the  origin  of  family  names,  as  we  call  them. 
Most  were  probably  given  originally  by  gen- 
eral consent  as  descriptive  of  personal  appear- 

48 


"JESUS  CHKIST,  HIS  ONLY  SON"     49 

ance,  character  or  employment,  as  for  instance 
Tallman,  Strong  or  Smith.  These  are  often  ab- 
surdly unsuitable  to  those  who  bear  them  now. 
Besides,  names  of  honour  are  sometimes  con- 
ferred upon  men  descriptive  of  character  and 
achievement.  In  some  such  way  Jesus  of 
Nazareth  came  to  be  called  the  Christ — or  Jesus 
Christ,  as  we  now  recognize  Him.  This  name 
distinguishes  Him  from  all  other  men  who  have 
ever  lived. 

There  is  deep  significance  in  each  one  of  these 
names.  Joseph  was  told  by  the  angel  of  the 
Lord  to  call  Mary's  son  Jesus,  and  this  meaning 
of  the  name  was  given — "  for  he  shall  save  his 
people  from  their  sins."  When  more  than  half 
of  the  ministry  of  Jesus  was  accomplished  He 
asked  His  disciples  the  result.  "  Whom  do  you 
say  that  I  am?"  and  Peter  answered,  "Thou 
art  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God." 
Christ  means  anointed.  Thou  art  the  anointed 
Son  of  God.  This  human  giving  of  a  name  was 
accepted  by  Jesus. 

We  are  now  to  consider  the  deep  significance 
of  the  full  name  Jesus  Christ.  The  first  name 
Jesus,  the  divinely  given  name,  signifies  what 
He  does;  the  second  name,  Christ,  the  humanly 
given  name,  signifies  how  He  does  it — the  man- 
ner in  which  He  accomplishes  His  mission. 

Jesus  is,  I  suppose,  the  dearest  name  ever 
uttered  by  human  lips.     It  was  the  name  Mary 


50  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

the  mother  used  in  speaking  to  and  of  her  son, 
the  mother  name  always  dear,  and  to  her  won- 
dering and  adoring  heart  specially  dear.  So  it 
is  the  heart  name  of  the  believer  in  all  ages; 
his  lips  quiver  with  emotion,  his  eyes  fill  with 
tears  as  he  speaks  the  name  of  his  Saviour.  To 
the  believer  there  is  no  music  on  earth  nor  in 
the  songs  of  heaven  like  the  name  of  Jesus. 
It  will  be  a  joy  to  us  to  meditate  upon  its  full 
significance  and  so  to  be  drawn  nearer  to  Him 
who  is  our  Saviour. 

The  angel  of  the  Lord  said,  "  Thou  shalt  call 
his  name  Jesus  for  he  shall  save  his  people  from 
their  sins."     Now  we  are  His  people,  for  we 
trust  Him.     Then  He  saves  us  from  our  sins. 
And  all  conscious  of  sin  are  invited  to  His  full 
salvation.     For  it  is  this  loving  and  all  powerful 
Jesus  who  says,  "  Come  unto  me  all  ye  that 
labour  and  are  heavy  laden  and  I  will  give  you 
rest."     These  are  surely  the  most  tender  and 
loving    words    ever    spoken    by    human    lips. 
Sinners  are  those  who  transgress  the  law  of 
God  in  thought  or  word  or  deed.     The  law  is 
that  of  our  being.     Love  God  who  has  given  us 
our   being   and    all    good    things,    and   who   is 
infinitely    lovely    in    His    nature,    love    Him 
supremely,  and  your  fellow  man  as  yourself. 
Looking  at  ourselves  in  the  light  of  this  law  we 
must  acknowledge  in  our  consciences  that  we 
are  sinners.     Now  at  once  we  are  prone  to  turn 


"JESUS  CHRIST,  HIS  ONLY  SON"      51 

our  thought  from  sin  itself  to  its  consequences. 
Will  we  be  discovered?  Will  we  be  held  to 
strict  account? 

We  recognize  that  evil,  suffering,  often  come 
to  us  from  transgressing  some  law  without  us 
or  within  us,  some  broken  limb  from  a  fall,  some 
severe  pain  from  unwholesome  food,  and  look- 
ing further  we  see  also  that  suffering  comes 
from  defeated  selfishness  and  from  the  contests 
working  harm  to  others  though  successful  for 
ourselves;  and  suffering  is  fearfully  prevalent  in 
this  world  since  sin  is  so  prevalent.  Thus  as  we 
reflect  the  dire  results  of  sin  loom  before  us  in 
terrifying  form ;  and  further  terror  is  awakened 
as  we  think  of  their  dominating  the  future  life. 

Now  it  is  to  be  noticed  that  nothing  is  said 
by  the  angel — nothing  is  said  in  this  divinely 
given  name  of  saving  us  from  the  consequences 
of  our  sins  either  in  time  or  eternity.  It  goes 
much  deeper  than  that — "  he  saves  us  from  our 
sins  " — that  is,  from  sin  itself.  It  is  not  the 
primary  object  of  Jesus  to  save  from  what  we 
call  evil,  from  suffering,  from  hardship.  In  the 
process  of  saving  from  sin  He  does  save  us 
largely  from  evil  as  the  consequence  of  sin,  but 
that  is  only  incidental  to  the  larger  saving  from 
sin.  In  proportion  as  a  life  of  virtue,  of  love  to 
God  and  man  is  reached  it  is  a  life  of  happiness, 
though  it  may  be  in  the  midst  of  suffering. 
Virtue  is  its  own  source  of  happiness,  its  own 


52  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

reward.  Outward  evil  loses  much  of  its  power. 
Songs  burst  forth  from  hovels,  from  sick  beds, 
even  from  prisons  and  martyr  flames. 

Then  too  the  nature  of  evil  is  changed  to  the 
soul  believing  in  Jesus  and  being  saved  from 
sin.  It  is  no  longer  in  the  line  of  punishment; 
that  sting  is  taken  away  as  we  shall  soon  see, 
but  it  becomes  disciplinary.  It  still  may  be  very 
heavy  and  hard  to  bear  but  it  is  being  adminis- 
tered by  the  loving  Father,  by  Jesus  the 
Saviour,  in  saving  us  from  sin.  So  earthly 
fathers,  earthly  teachers  give  tasks,  give  hard 
work  to  their  children  to  develop  strength  and 
steadfastness;  they  are  often  mistaken  in  their 
discipline,  but  Jesus  is  too  wise  and  loving  to 
make  any  mistakes.  We  have  utmost  cause  to 
trust  Him  fully  to  the  end. 

Neither  is  it  the  primary  object  of  Jesus  to 
save  from  the  eternal  punishment  of  sin.  He 
does  this  of  course  but  it  is  incidental  to  saving 
us  from  sin.  There  is  suffering  in  hell,  the  place 
of  punishment,  because  there  is  sin  there,  and 
as  long  as  there  is  sin  there,  there  will  be  suffer- 
ing. There  is  no  suffering  in  heaven,  "  no  sor- 
row, no  crying,  neither  any  pain,"  because  there 
is  no  sin  there.  Jesus,  Jesus,  the  dearest  name 
on  human  lips — He  saves  His  people  from  their 
sins.  It  is  vitally  important  for  us  all  to  un- 
derstand this  fully.  If  any  of  us  are  ever  think- 
ing of  putting  off  trusting  in  Jesus  to  the  end 


"JESUS  CHRIST,  HIS  ONLY  SON"     53 

of  this  life,  to  our  dying  beds,  we  have  wholly 
mistaken  His  mission;  we  are  thinking  not  of 
sin  but  of  its  consequences;  we  want  to  be  saved 
not  from  sin  but  from  its  punishment.  Then, 
too,  if  any  think  of  trusting  any  other,  as  saints, 
or  saintly  friends  or  our  own  selves,  it  must  be 
to  save  from  the  punishment  of  sin  and  so  it  is 
at  once  seen  to  be  vain.  Let  us  all  rather  now, 
at  once  in  this  our  time  of  need  and  of  oppor- 
tunity, trust  in  Jesus  to  save  us  from  our  sins. 

We  now  turn  to  the  second  name  Christ  to 
seek  more  fully  to  understand  how  He  saves  us 
from  sin.  Christ  is  the  Greek  name  which 
translates  the  Hebrew  name  Messiah.  Both 
names  mean  anointed.  In  Hebrew  life  there 
were  three  offices  to  which  men  were  anointed 
as  prophets,  priests  and  kings.  The  anointing 
consisted  of  pouring  oil  upon  the  head  and 
signified  that  God  set  apart  and  consecrated  the 
man  to  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  the  office. 
Thus  Aaron  was  anointed  as  Priest,  thus  David 
was  anointed  as  King,  thus  Elisha  was  anointed 
as  Prophet.  Aaron,  David,  Elisha,  great 
men — and  other  great  men  followed  them. 
Now  the  whole  account  given  of  these  prophets, 
priests  and  kings  through  succeeding  genera- 
tions in  the  long  history  shows  the  people  were 
led  to  look  for  the  coming  of  a  greater  Prophet, 
Priest  and  King  in  one  person.  Hence  the 
great  expectation  of  the  Messiah  was  awakened 


54  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

among  the  Jews.  Generations  passed  away, 
and  then  Jesus  began  His  ministry.  After  a 
suitable  time  of  ministry  He  asked  His  disciples, 
"  Whom  do  you  say  that  I  am?  "  We  cannot 
imagine  the  awe  with  which  the  answer  was 
given,  "  Thou  art  the  Messiah,  the  Christ,  the 
Son  of  the  living  God."  Those  giving  this  an- 
swer believed  the  hopes  of  the  Hebrew  race 
growing  through  their  long  history  were  at 
length  fully  realized  in  Him. 

Now  if  we  look  carefully  at  the  history  of  the 
whole  race  of  mankind  we  see  the  stirrings  of 
dormant  and  vague  hopes  which  are  made  fully 
alive  and  satisfied  in  the  Messiah  of  the  He- 
brews, the  Christ  of  the  world.  For  as  the  race 
rises  from  savage  conditions  towards  civiliza- 
tion the  presence  and  influence  of  these  three 
offices,  prophets,  priests  and  kings,  must  be 
recognized.  And  as  we  look  at  our  own  needs 
even  in  our  high  civilization  we  recognize  that 
Jesus  can  be  our  Saviour  from  our  sins  only 
as  He  is  our  Prophet,  Priest  and  King. 

Man  wherever  found  is  ignorant,  but  capable 
of  learning.  He  needs  a  teacher.  Among  all 
races  men  of  special  taste  and  ability  have  arisen 
who  have  become  teachers  of  their  fellows. 
Some  in  some  races  have  made  great  attain- 
ments and  have  led  their  people  to  great  knowl- 
edge— the  wise  men  of  the  east,  the  sages  of 
Egypt,  the  philosophers  of  Greece.     Many  have 


"  JESUS  CHRIST,  HIS  ONLY  SON  "      55 

been  enthusiastic  seekers  of  truth,  have  made 
great  discoveries  in  various  lines  and  have  con- 
ferred great  benefit  upon  their  fellows.  What- 
ever truths  these  great  teachers  have  taught 
have  been  their  readings  of  God's  great  book 
of  nature,  have  been  of  their  seeking  after  God's 
thoughts. 

When  we  come  to  the  Hebrew  race  their 
great  teachers  from  Moses,  the  great  prophet 
and  lawgiver,  down  to  the  last  prophet  of  the 
noble  line  were  specially  gifted  in  seeing  the 
truths  of  nature  as  revealing  God  and  were 
specially  anointed  by  the  spirit  of  God  for  larger 
vision  of  Him  in  His  character  and  works. 

Now  the  glory  of  all  the  teachers,  the 
prophets  of  all  ages  and  all  races  comes  from 
Christ,  and  centers  in  Him.  He  stands  at  the 
head.  He  is  the  great  Prophet,  the  Messiah  of 
God.  Scientists  tell  us  that  all  the  light  upon 
the  earth  comes  from  the  sun.  When  we  light 
our  fires  of  wood  or  coal,  when  we  light  our 
evening  lamps  of  oil  or  gas  or  electricity  we  are 
using  that  which  the  sun  has  compounded  and 
stored  up  for  us  ages  ago.  So  all  our  dis- 
coveries of  truth,  the  incentive,  the  attainment, 
the  truth  itself  comes  from  the  great  Teacher; 
and  in  all  and  beyond  all  we  have  from  the 
great  teachers  of  earth  are  the  teachings  of  the 
great  Prophet  Himself. 

He  has  made  clear  certain  truths  of  which  our 


56  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

greatest  teachers  had  but  dim  knowledge,  as 
the  character  of  God. 

He  has  brought  to  full  light  certain  truths  of 
which  our  greatest  teachers  could  only  con- 
jecture, as  man's  immortality. 

He  has  revealed  certain  truths  of  which  our 
greatest  teachers  were  entirely  ignorant,  the 
great  plan  of  God  for  our  salvation  from  sin. 

Looking  again  at  the  history  of  the  race,  man 
wherever  found  is  a  religious  being  and  also  he 
is  conscious  of  sinfulness.  As  man  emerges 
from  the  unknown  past  we  see  the  tribe 
gathered  for  worship,  and  there  is  an  altar,  a 
sacrifice  and  a  priest.  They  recognize  that  they 
need  some  one  to  approach  God  for  them;  they 
are  so  sinful  that  they  must  have  a  priest,  a 
sacrifice  and  an  altar.  What  does  it  mean? 
There  is  a  strong  desire  to  approach  God. 
There  is  an  instinctive  feeling  we  are  not  worthy 
to  approach  Him.  He  will  repel  us.  There  is 
the  reasonable  plan.  We  will  set  apart  a  priest 
to  approach  God  for  us  by  offering  sacrifice  to 
Him.  Perhaps  God  will  accept  us  through  the 
priest  and  the  sacrifice. 

This  instinctive  feeling  was  used  by  God  in 
directing  the  worship  of  the  Hebrews.  He 
taught  them  of  His  holiness  and  of  their  sinful- 
ness and  provided  for  them  a  way  in  which 
they  could  confess  their  sin  and  satisfy  for  it 
and  become  devoted  to  God.     They  were  to 


"  JESUS  CHRIST,  HIS  ONLY  SON  "      57 

stand  at  a  distance  from  His  tabernacle,  they 
were  to  confess  their  sins  upon  the  head  of  the 
sacrifice,  they  were  to  offer  the  life  to  God,  His 
life  for  their  life,  and  in  the  burnt  offering  was 
signified  their  entire  devotion  to  God.  Now 
while  they  stood  at  a  distance  a  priest  ap- 
proached God  for  them,  offered  their  sacrifice 
for  them,  interceded  for  them  and  returning 
to  them  gave  them  God's  blessing. 

The  glory  of  Christ,  the  anointed  Priest,  is 
seen  that  He  stands  at  the  head  of  the  priests  of 
all  races  and  ages — at  the  head  of  the  priests  of 
the  Hebrew  race — and  that  which  was  only 
signified  in  them  is  fulfilled  in  Him.  His  whole 
life  was  one  of  self-sacrifice  in  love  for  us  but 
especially  as  our  Priest  He  sacrificed  Himself 
upon  the  cross,  making  atonement  for  our  sins 
in  that  He  bore  in  His  suffering  and  death  all 
our  desert,  and  won  for  us  the  favour  of  God 
which  is  life  everlasting. 

Now  as  we  look  again  at  the  dim  ranks  of 
men  emerging  from  an  unknown  past  we  see 
they  have  a  leader.  He  is  the  chieftain  of  the 
tribe,  its  head;  it  becomes  a  nation,  the  head; 
the  chieftain  becomes  a  king.  In  him  govern- 
ment centers,  for  the  order  of  the  tribe  or  nation 
and  for  its  defense.  Even  in  our  republic  we 
have  a  Governor  or  President. 

We  do  not,  we  cannot  approve  of  all  prophets 
and   their   teachings — much   of   error    mingles 


58  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

with  truth — nor  of  all  priests — much  of  super- 
stition mingles  with  religious  feeling — nor  of  all 
kings — much  tyranny  mingles  with  govern- 
ment, but  we  recognize  the  influence  of  kings, 
of  government  in  the  advance  of  the  race. 

So  the  glory  of  Christ  is  seen  in  that  He 
stands  at  the  head  of  all  kings ;  of  all  govern- 
ment of  man,  the  social  being.  He  is  the 
anointed  King  of  the  race. 

Now  as  we  look  intently  at  Christ  alone  the 
anointed  Prophet,  Priest  and  King,  we  begin  to 
see  the  depth  and  height  of  meaning  of  that 
phrase  of  this  article  of  the  creed,  "  his  only 
son " — the  only  begotten  Son  of  God  the 
Father.  The  next  article  of  the  creed  will  shed 
fuller  light  upon  this  truth — now  we  see  its 
full  bearing  on  the  name  Christ. 

Christ  is  the  Prophet;  as  the  anointed,  "the 
only  begotten  son  of  God,"  He  not  only  teaches 
of  God,  He  shows  God  to  us,  reveals  God  in  His 
nature  and  character;  He  says,  "whoso  has 
seen  me  has  seen  the  Father." 

Christ  is  the  Priest;  as  the  anointed,  "the 
only  begotten  son  of  God,"  His  sufferings  and 
death  have  infinite  value.  No  mere  man,  how- 
ever innocent,  however  righteous,  could  have 
atoned  for  the  sin  of  man;  only  the  Divine 
Man  could  bear  our  curse,  could  have  pur- 
chased life  eternal  for  us. 

Christ  is  the  King;  as  the  anointed,  "  the  only 


"JESUS  CHRIST,  HIS  ONLY  SON"      59 

begotten  son  of  God,"  He  is  good  enough,  great 
enough  and  has  the  right  to  rule  over  our 
thoughts,  our  desires,  our  whole  lives  as  social 
beings;  He  is  the  Divine  King. 

Now  we  turn  again  to  our  confession,  I  be- 
lieve in  Jesus  Christ.  I  have  faith  in  Him  on  suf- 
ficient evidence  that  He  lived  and  died  and  arose 
again  as  recorded  in  the  Scriptures.  I  have  in- 
sight in  Him,  recognizing  certain  qualities  of 
highest  worth.  I  trust  in  Him  to  do  for  me  all 
I  need,  to  save  me  from  sin.  I  have  Him  as 
my  sole  principle  of  action.  I  can  say  with  the 
creed,  "  He  is  my  Lord."  So  I  partake  of  His 
anointing  I  am  a  Christian.  I  will  teach  of 
Jesus  Christ,  my  Prophet.  I  will  give  myself 
a  sacrifice  of  thanksgiving  to  Him,  my  Priest. 
I  will  fight  the  good  fight  of  faith  under  Him, 
my  King,  relying  on  His  care,  doing  His  will, 
honouring  Him  in  all  things. 

So  we  ask  all  to  join  with  us  in  this  article  of 
the  creed,  to  learn  of  Christ  the  Teacher,  to 
trust  in  Christ  the  Priest,  to  obey  Christ  the 
King,  to  learn  of,  to  trust,  to  obey  Jesus  as  He 
saves  His  people  from  their  sins. 


V. 

For  when  the  fullness  of  time  came  God 
sent  forth  his  son,  bom  of  a  woman,  born 
under  the  law. — Gal.  4 :  4. 

"  CONCEIVED  BY  THE  HOLY  GHOST, 
BORN  OF  THE  VIRGIN  MARY  " 

JESUS  CHRIST  lived  in  Judea  nineteen 
centuries  ago.  His  life  is  pictured  for  us 
in  the  four  Gospels.  Those  who  knew 
Him  best  believed  He  was  more  than  a  man. 
The  Apostles'  Creed  in  the  second  article  and 
especially  in  this  third  article  voices  the  belief 
of  the  Church  in  all  ages.  It  says  the  only  be- 
gotten Son  of  God  was  "  conceived  by  the  Holy 
Ghost,  born  of  the  Virgin  Mary."  This  concep- 
tion and  birth  are  described  in  the  early  chap- 
ters of  Matthew's  and  Luke's  Gospels.  This 
sets  Him  forth  as  the  most  remarkable  being 
who  has  ever  lived  upon  the  earth,  and  forms 
good  ground  to  believe  that  He  now  lives  at  the 
right  hand  of  God  in  heaven.  He  is  the  God 
incarnate,  the  Man  Divine.  In  our  text  the 
Apostle  Paul  says  that  the  Son  of  God  assumed 
our  human  nature  in  carrying  out  the  plan  of 

60 


«  CONCEIVED  BY  THE  HOLY  GHOST  "    61 

God  of  man's  redemption.  This  stupendous 
theme  should  widen  our  views  and  inflame  our 
hearts  with  the  love  of  Jesus  Christ. 

In  the  works  of  God  we  can  discern  no  trace 
of  either  haste  or  delay;  His  plans  are  con- 
ceived in  wisdom  and  executed  with  power; 
they  are  carried  on  from  the  beginning  with 
no  need  of  correction,  with  no  change  of 
method.  Science  reading  the  book  of  nature 
and  Religion  reading  the  book  of  revelation  in 
the  first  chapter  of  Genesis  see  God  forming  the 
globe  of  the  earth,  though  many  geologic  con- 
vulsions and  long  periods  of  time  are  in  its  vast 
surroundings.  When  dead  matter  was  fully 
prepared  God  bestowed  a  new  gift  directly  from 
Himself,  the  lower  kind  of  life.  When  the  full- 
ness of  time  was  come  God  again  interposed  a 
new  gift  from  Himself,  a  higher  kind  of  life. 
Again  through  long  ages  when  the  fullness  of 
time  was  come  God  again  touched  the  earth 
with  the  highest  kind  of  created  life,  the  like- 
ness to  Himself.  Again  through  long  ages 
when  the  fullness  of  time  was  come  God  gave 
from  Himself  the  highest  kind  of  uncreated  life, 
even  His  only  begotten  Son,  "  conceived  by  the 
Holy  Ghost,  born  of  the  Virgin  Mary." 

The  earth  was  already  old,  the  race  of  man 
had  passed  through  vast  experiences  when 
Jesus  Christ  was  born.  As  dead  matter  could 
not  bring  forth  even  the  lowest  life — as  the 


62  THE  APOSTLES'  CKEED 

lowest  life  could  not  bloom  into  the  highest 
life — as  the  higher  life  could  not  develop  the 
man  life,  so  man,  who  in  the  exercise  of  his 
moral  freedom  had  chosen  disobedience  to 
God,  fallen  man  could  not  raise  himself  or  sat- 
isfy himself  away  from  God.  Then  in  the  full- 
ness of  time  God  sent  His  own  Son,  the  desire 
of  all  nations,  who  became  the  God-Man,  Jesus 
Christ,  the  anointed  Saviour. 

The  key-note  to  all  the  prior  history  of  the 
race  is  preparation  for  Christ's  coming.  The 
earliest  civilizations  were  in  the  Euphrates  and 
Nile  valleys;  the  race  won  vast  material  pros- 
perity from  these  fertile  bottom  lands.  But 
neither  Egypt  nor  Babylon  could  save  man  from 
luxury  and  vice,  from  his  sins. 

In  ancient  Greece  man  developed  his  intel- 
lectual powers  and  his  sense  of  the  beautiful. 
But  learning  and  culture  could  not  save  man 
from  pride  and  sensuality,  from  his  sins.  In 
ancient  Rome  man  won  the  empire  of  the  world 
by  the  domination  of  his  will.  But  government 
and  power  could  not  save  man  from  selfishness 
and  cruelty,  from  his  sins.  In  Judea,  the  cen- 
tral land,  the  bridge  between  these  great  civili- 
zations, man  gained  the  knowledge  of  the  true 
God  and  of  righteousness.  But  even  this 
knowledge  could  not  save  him  from  formality 
and  intolerance,  from  his  sins. 

While   material   prosperity,   intellectual   de- 


"  CONCEIVED  BY  THE  HOLY  GHOST  "    63 

velopment,  social  order  and  formal  religion  in 
the  worship  of  the  true  God  could  not  save  man 
from  sin,  they  had  worth  in  themselves  and 
prepared  the  way  for  Christ  not  only  in  their 
failure  but  in  their  service.  Eastern  contempla- 
tion was  combined  with  western  energy.  Greek 
power  took  possession  of  the  East,  and  gave  for 
three  centuries  its  rich  inheritance  of  language 
and  energy  to  Babylon,  Judea  and  Egypt. 
Then  came  Roman  conquest  and  gave  its  laws 
and  government  to  the  world.  Thus  Greek 
culture  and  Roman  order  made  possible  the 
founding  and  spread  of  a  world  religion  in 
Jesus  Christ. 

The  age  in  which  Christ  lived  was  an  his- 
torical one.  It  was  the  Augustan  age  of  Rome. 
Statesmen,  orators,  historians,  writers  made  it 
splendid — as  was  the  Victorian  Age  in  Eng- 
land long  afterwards.  The  Greek  age  of  achieve- 
ment in  intellectual  effort  was  past;  its  philos- 
ophers and  poets  were  the  world's  inheritance 
in  its  rich  language.  Judea  had  given  the  world 
rich  inheritance  of  righteousness  in  her  long 
literature  of  the  deeds  of  lawgivers  and  kings, 
in  the  aspirations  of  poets  and  prophets. 

Back  of  the  age  in  which  Christ  lived 
stretched  a  thousand  years  of  Hebrew  history 
with  that  of  Egypt  and  Babylon.  Seven  hun- 
dred years  of  Greek  history,  five  hundred  years 
of  Roman  history.     Over  the  land  of  Judea  had 


64  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

flowed  the  Chaldean,  the  Greek  and  the  Roman 
power  and  civilization,  leaving  the  deposit  of 
three  languages  spoken  in  Christ's  time  and  by 
Christ  and  His  disciples — the  Hebrew,  the 
Greek  and  the  Latin — a  cultured  land  in  that 
cultured  age.  It  was  not  the  age  of  myths,  or 
in  which  myths  could  arise  and  grow;  that  age 
lay  far  back  in  the  dim  past.  For  all  future  ages 
the  events  in  the  life  of  Christ  would  be  beyond 
the  suspicion  of  myths,  would  be  clearly  seen  as 
historical.  From  His  life  came  the  four  mas- 
terly descriptions  of  it  we  have  in  the  Gospels. 
They  are  clear,  beautiful,  striking  pictures  of 
Him — like  photographs. 

Now  as  we  look  upon  this  life  passed  in  the 
clear  light  of  an  enlightened,  intelligent,  his- 
torical age,  upon  which  the  strong  light  of  his- 
torical investigation  has  ever  since  been  shining, 
we  see  a  most  remarkable  thing.  This  Jesus 
Christ  loved  God  supremely,  delighted  to  do 
His  will.  He  loved  man,  always  used  His 
thought  and  power  for  the  good  of  His  fellow 
man.  He  so  loved  man  that  He  died  for  him. 
We  cannot  find  a  flaw  in  His  life  as  compared 
with  the  law  of  man's  being  as  given  by  God. 
More  we  are  confirmed  in  this  in  that  His 
closest,  best  friends  who  knew  Him  most  inti- 
mately found  no  sin  in  Him.  So  also  His 
enemies,  and  He  had  sharp  and  unscrupulous 
ones,  could  find  no  flaw  in  Him.     Then  besides 


"  CONCEIVED  BY  THE  HOLY  GHOST  "    65 

all  this  there  seems  to  be  no  consciousness  of 
sin  in  Him.  Surely  He  is  the  best  of  all  possi- 
ble witnesses  of  His  own  nature.  We  ask  Him, 
Who  art  thou?  Hear  His  answer.  He  tells 
Nicodemus,  "  No  man  hath  ascended  into 
heaven  but  he  that  descended  out  of  heaven,  the 
son  of  man."  When  He  walked  upon  the 
waters  of  the  sea  of  Galilee  and  saved  Peter 
from  its  depths  the  disciples  worshipped  Him, 
saying,  "  Of  a  truth  thou  art  the  son  of  God." 
When  the  High  Priest,  acting  as  the  chief  judge 
of  the  highest  court  of  his  nation,  put  Jesus 
under  oath  and  asked  Him,  "  Art  thou  the 
Christ,  the  Son  of  God?"  Jesus  answered,  "I 
am. 

Between  the  creator  and  the  creature  there 
is  a  great  distinction.  The  more  perfect  and 
intelligent  the  man,  the  moral  creature,  is,  the 
more  clear  will  be  his  recognition  of  this  dis- 
tinction. The  claim  of  Jesus  Christ  thus  be- 
comes astounding.  No  mere  man  could  make 
it.  There  is  no  way  of  explaining  it  away  con- 
sistent with  the  character  of  Christ.  It  must 
simply  be  accepted.  These  are  only  a  few  of 
His  teachings  on  the  nature  of  His  being — 
many  others  could  be  selected.  Look  again  at 
them :  and  the  Church's  creed  is  the  only  an- 
swer. 

How  did  the  Son  of  Man  descend  from 
heaven?     Not  attended  by  the  hosts  of  angels, 


66  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

not  with  the  glory  of  God.  This  earth  has  not 
yet  received  such  a  visit  from  its  great  Creator. 
He  became  incarnate,  assumed  human  nature. 
He  "  was  conceived  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  born  of 
the  Virgin  Mary."  The  man  walks  the  waves 
of  the  sea,  and  receives  the  worship  of  His  fel- 
lows as  the  Son  of  God.  The  man  stands  be- 
fore the  Sanhedrim,  and  under  oath  says  He  is 
the  Son  of  God,  and  the  court  sends  Him  to  the 
cross.     The  Son  of  God  was  the  son  of  Mary. 

This  is  confirmed  by  Jesus  Christ's  place  in 
the  Bible.  He  is  the  harmony  of  its  teachings. 
He  is  the  center,  the  culmination  of  the  whole. 
Take  away  the  Divinity  of  Christ  from  the 
Bible  and  it  loses  its  completeness.  The  syllo- 
gism is  convincing.  He  to  whom  the  names, 
attributes,  works  and  honours  of  God  are 
ascribed  must  be  God.  These  all,  in  the  Old 
Testament  of  history,  ceremony,  praise  and 
prophecy,  and  in  the  New  Testament  of  Gos- 
pels, Acts  and  Epistles,  are  ascribed  to  Christ. 
Therefore  He  is  the  Son  of  God,  "  conceived  of 
the  Holy  Ghost,  born  of  the  Virgin  Mary." 

This  is  confirmed  by  Christ's  place  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  race.  We  have  already  glanced  at 
this  history  before  His  coming  to  the  earth 
nineteen  centuries  ago.  Now  His  religion  has 
spread  over  the  earth.  He  is  its  distinctive 
feature — the  Divine  Saviour.  Other  religions 
have  the  one  God,  as  the  Jew  and  the   Mo- 


"  CONCEIVED  BY  THE  HOLY  GHOST  "    67 

hammedan.  Other  religions  have  a  code  of 
morals,  as  Buddha  and  Confucius.  Other  re- 
ligions have  the  missionary  spirit,  as  Buddha 
and  Mohammedan.  But  the  distinctive  truth 
of  the  Christian  religion  is  Jesus,  the  Saviour 
from  sin;  the  Christ,  the  anointed  Prophet, 
Priest  and  King;  the  Son  of  God,  "conceived 
by  the  Holy  Ghost,  born  of  the  Virgin  Mary  "; 
the  God  incarnate,  the  Man  Divine,  the  Saviour 
of  sinners.  This  gives  Him  the  first  place  in 
the  life  and  heart  of  the  believer.  The  con- 
science is  at  peace,  the  soul  is  satisfied,  the  life  is 
purified.  The  devotion  of  Christ  is  everywhere 
and  in  all  ages  the  noblest  attainment  of  man. 

The  truth  is  of  vast  importance  to  each  one 
personally.  Jesus  is  the  Son  of  God.  Do  I 
ignore  His  claim  or  resist  it?  Then  I  resist 
God,  and  I  resist  Him  in  His  love,  in  His  effort 
to  save  me  from  my  sins.  Rather  I  trust  Him 
and  adore  Him  as  my  Saviour. 

We  are  utterly  unable  to  understand  how  the 
two  natures,  divine  and  human,  are  united  in 
one  person.  The  seeming  contradictions  spoken 
of  Christ  fill  us  with  awe,  and  are  beyond  our 
understanding.  The  wearied  Saviour  is  asleep 
in  a  frail  boat  in  a  great  storm  on  the  sea.  The 
disciples  in  fear  awake  Him,  and  He  commands 
the  winds  and  the  waves  and  there  is  a  great 
calm.  The  Jews  say,  "  Thou  art  not  yet  fifty 
years  old,"  and  they  were  right.    Christ  replies, 


68  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

"  Before  Abraham  was  I  am,"  and  He  knew 
and  spoke  the  truth.  We  cannot  understand 
our  own  personality,  how  the  physical  and 
mental  are  combined  in  one  person;  but  these 
existed  in  Christ  as  well  as  in  us;  and  so  this 
mystery  fails  to  help  us  in  the  more  mysterious 
union  of  the  two  natures  in  Him,  except  as  mak- 
ing us  humble  in  estimating  the  scope  and 
power  of  our  understanding.  Christ  too  is  said 
to  dwell  in  us,  "  the  hope  of  glory,"  but  this 
indwelling  is  by  His  spirit  through  our  faith 
and  it  does  not  combine  our  nature  with  His  in 
the  matter  of  making  of  the  two  one  person. 
The  union  is  close,  is  vital,  is  glorious  and  it  too 
is  beyond  our  weak  power  of  understanding; 
we  are  simply  conscious  of  our  individuality, 
our  personality,  by  itself. 

Jesus  Christ  is  just  as  truly  human  as  He  is 
divine.  As  we  received  our  existence  by  birth 
so  He  received  His;  He  was  born  of  the  Virgin 
Mary.  Inexpressibly  great  is  the  honour  thus 
placed  upon  motherhood.  The  hopes  and  fears, 
the  trials  and  joys  which  dwell  in  a  mother's 
heart  stirred  the  heart  of  Mary  as  she  looked 
forward  to  the  birth  of  her  son  Jesus.  Mother 
is  the  dearest,  sweetest  name  on  human  lips, 
more  dear  now  since  Jesus  our  Saviour  often 
had  it  upon  His  sacred  lips,  through  life  and  at 
last  upon  the  cross. 

There  is  a  great  significance  in  the  term,  the 


«  CONCEIVED  BY  THE  HOLY  GHOST  "    69 

Son  of  Man.  Jesus  frequently  called  Himself 
the  Son  of  Man.  Ezekiel  is  the  only  one  who 
used  that  term  freely  of  himself,  and  he  does 
this  in  his  humility,  to  cheer  the  depression  of 
his  people  in  their  captivity.  There  seems  a 
different  tone  in  Christ's  use  of  the  term;  some- 
thing like  the  insistence  that  He  is  a  man — a  full 
man,  a  complete  man.  He  is  the  one  person 
in  the  Scriptures  who  claims  in  the  real  sense 
to  be  Divine,  the  Son  of  God.  In  His  favourite 
term  the  Son  of  Man,  He  magnifies  that  claim 
by  insisting  that  He  is  a  true  man.  If  we 
think  of  any  other  Bible  character  insisting  that 
he  is  a  man,  for  example  John  or  Paul,  we  see 
how  absurd  it  would  be.  We  would  answer  at 
once,  "  Who  ever  dreamed  you  were  anything 
else?  "  It  is  appropriate  upon  the  lips  of  only 
one  being,  Jesus  Christ.  While  I  am  the  Son 
of  God  I  am  also  a  true  man,  the  Son  of  Man. 
This  draws  our  attention  to  His  full  hu- 
manity. In  Him  humanity  is  for  once  fully 
manifested.  Other  men  are  fragments.  Jesus 
Christ  is  the  whole  man.  Other  men  are  frag- 
ments. Each  may  have  many  manly  qualities 
but  not  all;  each  quality  may  be  nearly  perfect, 
but  not  fully.  No  quality  is  fully  rounded;  no 
man  has  all  such  qualities  complete.  Each 
great  division  of  the  race  may  excel  in  some 
manly  qualities  and  be  deficient  in  others.  Now 
Jesus  Christ  has  all  excellencies  of  manhood. 


TO  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

He  is  the  perfect  man,  the  fully  rounded,  com- 
plete man,  the  best,  the  whole  human  nature, 
no  excellency  left  out,  or  in  any  sense  deficient. 
He  is  the  Son  of  Man.  So  He  satisfies  the  ideals 
of  all  ages  and  of  all  races,  and  supplements 
them  as  well — appeals  both  to  their  excellencies 
and  to  their  defects. 

The  men  of  the  East  are  contemplative. 
Jesus  appeals  to  the  oriental  in  His  contempla- 
tion. 

We  men  of  the  West  are  active.  Jesus  is 
more  active  than  even  the  Occident  demands. 

The  men  of  ancient  times  made  great  achieve- 
ments, but  we  have  to  make  excuses  for  even 
Socrates  and  Marcus  Aurelius  arising  from  the 
age  in  which  they  lived.  No  such  excuses  are 
needed  for  Jesus  Christ. 

The  men  of  modern  times  have  made  great 
attainments  in  thought  and  life,  but  Jesus  stands 
still  far  ahead  of  even  our  ideals;  He  is  the  Son 
of  Man.  Many  national  traits  are  so  marked 
that  we  may  often  describe  a  race  or  a  nation 
in  one  word.  That  word  if  well  chosen  will 
describe  Christ,  but  not  fully ;  it  will  take  many 
such  national  traits  and  still  others  to  set  forth 
the  ideal  man.  He  has  the  love  of  righteous- 
ness of  the  Jew,  the  love  of  beauty  of  the  Greek, 
the  love  of  power  of  the  Roman.  So  with  our 
modern  nations.  He  has  the  rugged  strength 
of  the  English,  the  perseverance  of  the  German, 


"  CONCEIVED  BY  THE  HOLY  GHOST  "    71 

the  genius  of  the  Italian,  the  brilliancy  of  the 
French,  the  energy  of  the  American.  Jesus 
Christ  does  not  belong  to  any  one  nation  or 
race,  He  belongs  to  all.  He  is  a  citizen  of  the 
world,  the  Son  of  Man. 

In  the  sphere  of  humanity  there  are  two 
hemispheres.  The  one  we  call  man,  the  other 
we  call  woman.  Jesus  Christ  has  all  true 
manliness.  In  Him  are  the  manly  virtues: 
stern  iron  integrity,  as  in  the  temptation; 
justice  never  giving  way  to  weak  feeling,  as 
rebuking  His  disciples;  severe  truthfulness  in 
speaking  plainly  to  friend  and  foe;  righteous  in- 
dignation, as  denouncing  the  Pharisees;  calm 
courage  facing  angry  mobs;  steady  self-sacri- 
fice, not  in  the  excitement  of  the  hour  alone, 
but  in  the  long  and  steady  advance  to  the  cross. 
He  is  every  inch  a  man.  Just  as  markedly 
He  has  all  the  womanly  virtues:  purity  without 
a  shadow  of  an  evil  thought;  tender  considera- 
tion for  the  ignorant;  compassion  for  the  sor- 
rowing; sympathy  for  the  suffering;  patient 
endurance  of  wrong;  gentleness,  as  a  woman's 
touch ;  love  beyond  a  mother's.  He  is  the  com- 
plete sphere  of  humanity,  the  Son  of  Man. 

In  His  day  as  in  ours  the  race  of  man  was 
divided  into  two  great  classes — the  rich  and  the 
poor.  To-day  we  call  them  the  capitalist  class 
and  the  labouring  class.  And  there  is  not  only 
division     but     often     conflict     between     them. 


n  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

Jesus  was  a  poor  man;  in  the  latter  part  of  His 
ministry  He  had  not  where  to  lay  His  head. 
Up  until  the  time  of  His  ministry  He  was  a 
labouring  man — in  boyhood  in  the  humble 
home,  in  young  manhood  a  carpenter  at  His 
bench  earning  His  living  by  daily  toil.  Indus- 
try, frugality  were  prominent  in  His  life.  The 
welfare  of  labour  was  His  welfare  when  on 
earth,  and  we  may  be  sure  it  is  dear  to  Him  now. 
The  great  multitude  of  His  followers  in  all  ages 
and  now  belong  to  the  labouring  class.  But  He 
is  not  a  part  man — He  is  the  whole  man,  the 
Son  of  Man.  No  man  was  too  rich  to  be  His 
brother,  though  a  millionaire.  He  went  to  the 
houses  of  the  rich  in  full  sympathy  with  all  their 
needs.  He  cured  their  sick,  He  faithfully  re- 
buked their  errors,  He  instructed  them  as 
others.  More  than  all,  He  tried  to  teach  them 
the  meaning  of  their  wealth,  that  they  were  the 
stewards  of  God,  they  were  to  gain  wealth  by 
honest  and  fair  dealings,  and  should  use  their 
riches  only  in  obedience  to  His  will,  and  that 
the  poor  were  their  brothers.  He  is  the  Son 
of  Man — He  appeals  to  both  labour  and  capital 
by  His  full  manhood,  treating  them  as  His 
brothers  and  influencing  them  to  seek  each  the 
other's  good.  When  capital  says  to  its  brother, 
We  will  give  fair  wages,  we  will  take  fair  in- 
terest for  the  money  invested,  and  we  will  share 
with  you  the  remaining  profits  of  your  labour 


"  CONCEIVED  BY  THE  HOLY  GHOST  "    73 

and  our  money ;  when  labour  says  to  its  brother, 
We  will  seek  your  interests  in  our  work,  we  will 
be  diligent,  skillful  and  faithful ;  when  each  shall 
seek  the  profits  of  the  other  as  he  seeks  his  own, 
then  there  will  be  cooperation  instead  of  conflict 
under  the  spirit  and  influence  of  the  Son  of 
Man.  His  influence  as  Son  of  Man  in  this  as  in 
all  respects,  in  this  relation  as  in  all  relations, 
is  made  commanding  by  His  being  as  well  the 
Son  of  God. 

His  work  as  Saviour,  the  way  He  saves,  is 
fully  treated  in  the  following  articles  of  the 
creed.  We  can  easily  see  in  this  article  some  of 
the  meaning  of  the  Scripture  in  calling  Him  the 
only  mediator  between  God  and  man.  One 
who  mediates  must  have  the  nature  of  both  the 
estranged  parties.  So  Christ  represents  God  to 
us.  We  are  sinners.  God  in  His  righteousness 
cannot  approve  and  favour  us  as  sinners.  Now 
if  He  was  revealed  as  stern,  relentless,  heart- 
less, as  condemning  us  and  cold  and  indifferent 
to  us,  having  no  pity,  no  sympathy  for  suffering, 
sinful  man,  we  could  never  be  led  to  love  Him. 
All  the  terrors  of  the  law  could  not  force  love. 
You  cannot  drive  with  whips  and  brushes  a 
swarm  of  bees  into  a  field  where  there  are  no 
flowers,  nor  can  you  keep  them  out  of  a  field 
full  of  flowers  with  all  your  whips  and  brushes. 
But  God  is  not  revealed  as  stern,  relentless 
justice  alone ;  He  is  just,  but  also  loving.     "  God 


74  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

so  loved  the  world  that  he  gave  his  only  be- 
gotten son  that  whosoever  believeth  on  him 
should  not  perish  but  have  eternal  life."  He 
gave  His  Son  in  love  to  die  for  us;  He  reveals 
His  infinite  yearning  love  for  us  by  the  gift  of 
His  Son.  Hard  indeed  must  be  the  heart  that 
will  not  love  Him  in  return. 

So  Christ  is  our  representative  to  God.  Man, 
the  very  best  of  us,  recognizes  the  rightfulness 
of  the  law  of  our  being;  and  then  disobeys  it. 
The  divine  spark  is  not  blown  entirely  out;  it 
flames  up  and  then  sinks  down  again.  We  ad- 
mire virtue  till  the  call  comes  to  practice  it. 
We  hate  sin,  until  the  temptation  comes  to  in- 
dulge it.  We  have  moral  convictions  but  too 
often  are  unfaithful  to  them.  We  admire  the 
good  but  fall  into  the  evil.  Then  the  Son  of 
God  becomes  the  Son  of  Man.  He  stands  as 
our  representative  before  God,  a  man  as  He 
ought  to  be,  the  ideal  man  fully  realized. 

God  now  looks  with  favour  upon  us  as  repre- 
sented by  the  perfect  man,  the  Son  of  Man. 

We  now  look  with  love  upon  God  as  repre- 
sented by  the  Son  of  God. 

Jesus  Christ  is  my  Lord  of  greatest  victory 
over  sin,  of  greatest  glory,  that  of  love.  I  will 
rely  upon  His  righteousness,  depend  upon  His 
strength,  follow  His  example. 


VI. 

This  is  my  blood  of  the  covenant  which 
is  poured  out  for  many  unto  remission  of 
sins. — Matt.  26 :  28. 

"  SUFFERED  UNDER  PONTIUS  PILATE, 

WAS  CRUCIFIED  DEAD  AND  BURIED; 

HE  DESCENDED  INTO  HELL  " 

OUR  Saviour  Jesus  Christ  is  at  once  the 
Son  of  God  and  the  Son  of  Man.  We 
are  not  able  to  fully  fathom  either  title. 
All  of  divinity  is  in  the  one.  All  of  humanity 
is  in  the  other.  All  of  humanity  as  God  de- 
signed and  created  it,  free  from  sin.  He,  the 
ideal  man,  enjoyed  the  fellowship  with  men  in 
their  homes,  at  their  feasts,  by  the  wayside,  in 
their  synagogues.  He  had  deep  sympathy  for 
the  distressed  and  wrought  many  wonderful 
works  for  their  help.  He  had  great  love  for 
all  mankind,  and  wonderful  love  for  His  friends; 
He  loved  Mary  and  Martha  and  Lazarus,  whom 
He  raised  from  the  dead,  and  He  awakened 
great  love  in  many  for  Himself. 

This  wonderful  Person,  the  Son  of  God  and 
the  Son  of  Man,  lived  upon  the  earth  for  thirty 

75 


?6  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

years  in  the  bright  light  of  an  historical  age. 
His  life  has  been  more  studied  in  all  succeeding 
ages  than  that  of  any  other  historical  character. 
We  know  more  about  Him,  His  actions,  His 
thoughts  and  feelings  than  we  do  of  any  other 
man  who  ever  lived. 

We  ask  what  was  the  prevailing  feature  that 
characterized  His  life.  We  say  at  once  suffer- 
ing. How  did  this  wonderful  person  leave  this 
earth?     He  died  a  shameful  death. 

Our  article  of  the  Apostles'  Creed  now  de- 
mands our  careful  attention.  He  suffered  un- 
der Pontius  Pilate,  was  crucified  dead  and 
buried.  He  descended  into  hell.  His  suffer- 
ing culminated  in  His  trial  and  death. 

There  is  an  immense  amount  of  human  suffer- 
ing from  which  Christ  was  absolutely  free,  ex- 
cept through  His  compassion.  Much  of  our 
suffering  comes  from  being  out  of  harmony  with 
our  surroundings,  from  broken  natural  laws, 
from  being  out  of  harmony  within,  from  con- 
flicting passions,  from  broken  moral  laws. 

There  is  no  hint  of  Christ  ever  being  sick  or 
suffering  pain  from  His  own  act.  He  was  evi- 
dently a  man  in  perfect  health.  So  there  is  no 
hint  of  His  having  any  sorrow  or  dissatisfaction 
from  not  being  good  or  not  doing  good. 
Through  all  His  suffering  there  was  a  deep  un- 
derlying delight  in  doing  the  will  of  God. 

Now  consider  one  or  two  features  beneath 


"  SUFFERED  UNDER  PONTIUS  PILATE  "  77 

this  surface.     We  probably  all  know  instances 
where  men  and  women  leave  homes  of  plenty 
and  refinement  to  dwell  in  the  slums  of  a  great 
city   or  in   heathen   lands  for   the   purpose   of 
sympathy  and  help.     They  have  the  spirit  of 
Christ  and  follow  His  example.     They  retain 
their  purity,  they  have  the  joy  of  doing  good, 
still  there  is  great  self-denial  and  suffering  from 
contact  with  the  impure,  and  from  sympathy 
with  their  sufferings;  and  the  closer  the  tie  of 
brotherhood    the    greater    the    suffering.      So 
Christ  left  the  purity  of  heaven  for  the  sinful- 
ness of  earth.     His  pure  soul  suffered  the  con- 
tact with  sinful  beings  whom  He  loved.     He 
dwelt  in  close  ties  with  them  and  always  had 
the  most  tender  sympathy  for  their  great  suffer- 
ing.    So  sometimes  one  of  us  devotes  himself 
to    save    men    from    an    enthroned    and   awful 
wrong,  appeals  to  them  to  arouse  and  cast  it 
off.     He  is  a  reformer,  pure  in  motive,  earnest 
in  life;  he  too  has  the  spirit  of  Christ  and  fol- 
lows His  example.     Often  he  suffers  as  Christ 
suffered  from  being  misunderstood,  misrepre- 
sented, resisted,  even  hated  by  the  men  he  de- 
sires to  save.     Often  he  suffers  as  Christ  suf- 
fered from  being  misunderstood  by  his  friends 
and    followers,    from    the    half-heartedness    of 
many  followers,  from  being  deserted  by  those 
he  had  the  right  to  rely  upon  in  times  of  trial, 
distress  and  danger. 


IS  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

These  two  kinds  of  suffering  of  the  infinitely 
pure  and  loving  Christ  were  endured  by  Him  all 
through  His  life.  They  increased  in  intensity 
as  His  ministry  advanced  and  they  culminated 
in  His  death  upon  the  cross.  We  can  only 
faintly  imagine  them ;  our  purity  is  itself  tinged 
with  the  vice  from  which  it  revolts.  Our  love 
for  others  has  some  pride  of  self-love  in  it, 
awakened  by  their  opposition. 

Another  element  of  His  suffering  lies  in  His 
foreseeing  His  death  throughout  His  ministry 
and  in  His  dread  of  it.  There  are  foreshadow- 
ings  of  His  death  in  His  early  teachings  and 
He  very  plainly  taught  of  its  coming  and  its 
meaning  in  the  last  year  of  His  life.  He  clearly 
foreknew  it  and  as  steadily  advanced  towards  it. 
So  He  foreknew  its  dreadful  nature,  the  rejec- 
tion by  His  people,  the  death  of  agony  and 
shame  upon  the  cross.  He  had  the  suffering  of 
long  anticipation,  and  bore  it  nobly,  advancing 
step  by  step  towards  it.  He  was  the  Son  of 
Man,  full  humanity  was  in  Him,  and  so  the 
natural  love  of  life  must  have  been  strong  in 
His  fullness  of  life.  Fullness  of  life  was  in  Him 
and  so  a  revulsion  from  the  fate  of  being  cast 
out  by  His  fellow  men  as  unworthy  to  live  must 
have  been  strong  in  Him.  He  was  a  young 
man,  in  the  splendid  vigour  of  the  prime  of  life, 
and  the  love  of  life  must  have  been  strong  in 
Him.     Still  all  these  reasons  and  more  besides 


"  SUFFERED  UNDER  PONTIUS  PILATE  "   79 

are  needed  to  explain  to  us  His  dread  of  His 
coming  death.  We  see  it  in  several  sayings  of 
our  Lord,  but  it  comes  out  strongly  in  His 
prayer  in  the  Garden  of  Gethsemane:  "My 
Father,  if  it  be  possible  let  this  cup  pass  away 
from  me.  Nevertheless  not  as  I  will,  but  as 
thou  wilt."  Many  a  young  hero  has  advanced 
to  his  death  in  the  excitement  of  the  hour  of 
trial.  Now  after  the  long  advance  through  the 
years  and  the  hour  is  here,  does  our  Lord  shrink 
from  death? 

Surely  there  was  an  element  of  suffering  in 
His  coming  death  which  we  have  not  yet 
grasped  which  was  the  cause  of  His  dread  of  it, 
which  was  present  whenever  He  thought  of  His 
death,  and  which  grew  in  intensity  as  He  came 
near  to  it.  All  the  suffering  we  have  thus  far 
seen  and  much  of  the  suffering  of  His  last  days 
came  from  His  fellow  men;  in  this  and  beyond 
this  there  seems  a  great  realm  of  mystery  to 
us  but  very  real  and  clear  to  Him,  the  suffering 
that  came  upon  Him  directly  from  God.  As 
we  now  consider  the  suffering  He  endured  from 
men  we  see  our  depth  of  sinfulness  as  we  are 
related  to  those  who  crucified  Him,  and  we  see 
also  something  of  His  deep  suffering  in  His 
close  relation  as  Son  of  Man  to  those  who  sent 
Him  ignominiously  out  of  this  life.  He  felt  the 
depth  of  sinfulness  in  those  He  came  to  save; 
and  He  still  loved  them  and  prayed  for  them — 


80  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

"  Father,  forgive  them,  they  know  not  what 
they  do  " — as  He  died  for  them  upon  the  cross. 

We  often  say  the  people,  the  mass  of  men 
embracing  all  classes,  have  deep  down  in  their 
nature  the  admiration  of  the  right;  they  will 
instinctively  choose  the  right  when  left  to  act 
spontaneously.  But  the  crowd,  the  mass  of 
the  people,  of  His  own  nationality,  many  of 
whom  had  doubtlessly  been  greatly  blessed  by 
Him,  turned  against  Him  in  the  crisis  and  with 
loud  cries,  without  a  dissenting  voice,  demanded 
of  Pilate  that  He  should  be  crucified.  But  they 
were  influenced  by  their  leaders,  we  say  in  ex- 
cusing them.  These  leaders  were  the  best  men 
of  their  race;  their  leadership  arose  from  their 
religious  life  and  from  their  patriotism.  These 
had  for  a  long  time  opposed  Christ,  and  now 
they  who  by  rights  ought  to  have  received  and 
been  loyal  to  Him  demanded  in  bitter  hatred 
that  He  should  be  crucified. 

There  was  an  organized  system  of  govern- 
ment. We  think  of  society  as  so  organized  for 
its  protection  from  evilly  disposed  members  and 
from  outside  enemies  and  as  expressing  its 
highest  ideals  of  social  well-being.  This  gov- 
ernment had  a  long  history,  so  expressing  the 
ideals  of  successive  generations,  and  it  cul- 
minated in  a  supreme  court  composed  of  the 
most  just  and  eminent  men  of  the  nation. 

Our  Lord  stands  before  this  supreme  court 


"SUFFERED  UNDER  PONTIUS  PILATE"  81 

and  it  sentences  Him  to  death.  Who  can 
imagine  the  suffering  of  one  sentenced  by  the 
highest  court  to  death — and  particularly  if  he 
is  innocent  of  all  desert  of  death,  and  instead 
deserves  the  highest  commendation  of  the 
court? 

But  there  is  a  higher  government  still — 
Rome,  a  world  empire,  noted  for  its  laws  and 
its  fearless  administration  of  justice.  It  is  cen- 
tered in  a  person,  Pontius  Pilate. 

The  Roman  judge  feels  Christ  is  innocent  of 
all  desert  of  death,  but  from  personal  ambition 
to  retain  his  place  and  power  he  sentences  Him 
to  the  cross.  Unworthy  are  all  the  motives  of 
action,  sinful,  despicable  even  to  us  with  our 
dim  knowledge  and  blurred  conscience;  what 
suffering  they  must  have  caused  Christ — all  the 
motives  of  the  populace,  of  the  leaders,  of  the 
judges  of  His  own  supreme  court,  of  the  judge 
of  the  empire  of  the  world.  There  seems  only 
one  thing  that  can  be  added:  the  cowardly  de- 
sertion of  His  friends,  the  betrayal,  the  denial; 
they  all  forsook  Him  and  fled.  Yet  there  is 
another  thing,  too,  the  brutality  of  which  human 
nature  is  capable:  the  soldiers  mocking  Him, 
buffeting  Him,  crucifying  Him — the  crown  of 
thorns,  the  nails  in  hands  and  feet,  the  exposure 
and  agony  of  the  cross.  Yes,  one  thing  more 
of  suffering:  He  the  purest,  noblest  of  men,  the 
Son  of  Man,  is  crucified  between  two  thieves. 


82  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

Now  let  us  reverently  try  to  realize  what  was 
the  suffering  that  came  upon  our  Lord  directly 
from  God.  In  His  suffering  from  man,  in  all 
this  combined  suffering  that  sinful  humanity 
could  bring  upon  Christ,  there  was  of  course 
involved,  without  excusing  man  at  all,  the  per- 
mission of  God.  This  Christ  recognized  when 
He  told  Pilate  that  he  had  no  power  except  as 
God  had  given  him,  and  in  other  of  His  sayings. 
This  the  Apostle  Peter  mentions  at  Pentecost. 
"  Christ  being  delivered  by  the  determinate 
counsel  and  foreknowledge  of  God  ye  by  the 
hand  of  lawless  men  did  crucify  and  slay."  But 
beyond  this  the  dying  Christ  upon  the  cross  had 
the  added  suffering  directly  from  God. 

We  read  in  the  Gospels  that  while  our  Lord 
was  hanging  upon  the  cross,  there  was  dark- 
ness over  all  the  land  from  the  sixth  hour  till 
the  ninth  hour;  and  at  the  ninth  hour  Jesus 
cried  with  a  loud  voice,  "  My  God,  my  God,  why 
hast  thou  forsaken  me?"  Beginning  at  noon 
the  darkness  lasted  hour  after  hour.  It  must 
have  appalled  all  the  people  who  had  crucified 
Him ;  they  must  have  waited  in  silence  the  re- 
sult of  this  frown  of  God  upon  their  act.  But 
it  seems  it  was  more  than  that.  Jesus  endured 
it  too  in  silence;  and  then  He  could  endure  it 
no  longer  and  He  made  this  cry  with  a  loud 
voice.  The  cross  did  not  kill  Him.  The  frown 
of  God  killed  Him.     God  had  forsaken  Him. 


"SUFFERED  UNDER  TONTIUS  PILATE"  83 

Here  as  in  all  His  suffering  there  was  no  desert 
of  it  on  His  part.     His  last  loud  cry  was  that  of 
true  faith  of  the  Son  of  Man,  "  Father,  into  thy 
hands  I  commend  my  spirit."     But  He  stood  in 
close  relation  to  sinners;  He  suffered  from  them 
and  with  them;  He  represented  them,  and  so 
endured  this  culmination  of  all  human  suffer- 
ing in  its  sinfulness;  He  endured  the  sting  of 
death;  He  was  forsaken  of  God.     When  they 
took  Him  down  from  the  cross  they  did  not 
break  His  legs  as  they  did  those  of  the  two 
thieves,  for  He  was  already  dead.     The  spear 
thrust  in  His  side  did  not  kill  Him.     He  was 
already   dead,   and   the   blood   and   water   that 
flowed  forth  indicated  that  He  had  died  of  a 
broken  heart.     The  mental  and  spiritual  suffer- 
ings of  Christ  killed  Him ;  not  only  the  bodily 
wounds  but  the  being  cast  out  of  men,  the  being 
forsaken  of  God.     So  His  work  was  finished, 
His  redeeming  work.     "  It  is  finished,"  He  said. 
He  was  buried  by  His  friends;  loving  hands 
laid  Him  in  the  tomb  of  the  rich,  with  many 
fragrant  spices,  and  a  Roman  guard  watched 
over  the  tomb;  it  was  a  burial  fit  for  a  king. 
The  last  words  of  this  article  of  the  creed,  "  He 
descended  into  hell,"  mean  that  His  spirit  left 
the  body  and  went  to  the  place  of  disembodied 
spirits.     His  saying  to  the  repentant  and  be- 
lieving thief,  "  To-day  thou  shalt  be  with  me  in 
paradise,"  His  prayer  to  God,  "  Father,  into  thy 


84  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

hands  I  commend  my  spirit,"  these  and  the  gen- 
eral teaching  of  the  Scripture  show  that  His 
suffering  for  our  sins  was  ended  with  His  death 
upon  the  cross. 

Now  we  must  try  to  learn  what  was  accom- 
plished by  this  great  feature  of  the  life  and 
death  of  Christ  as  set  forth  in  this  article  of 
the  creed:  "He  suffered  under  Pontius  Pilate, 
was  crucified  dead  and  buried.  He  descended 
into  hell."  The  silence  of  the  creed  of  the 
Church  as  to  the  meaning  of  His  death  is  per- 
haps a  caution  to  us  of  the  great  difficulty  of 
the  subject.  What  was  the  meaning  of  Christ's 
death?  The  best  of  all  teachers  is  Jesus  Christ 
Himself. 

What  did  Christ  teach  concerning  the  mean- 
ing of  His  death?  There  are  four  great  teach- 
ings of  Christ  concerning  the  meaning  of  His 
death,  and  there  is  a  marked  progression  in  this 
teaching  of  that  which  is  so  difficult  for  us  to 
understand. 

The  first  half  of  Christ's  ministry  was  devoted 
to  teaching  the  nature  of  His  kingdom.  Then 
He  asked  His  disciples  concerning  the  results  of 
this  teaching,  "Whom  do  ye  say  that  I  am?" 
They  confessed  Him  as  the  Christ.  Then  both 
Gospels,  Matthew  and  Mark,  say  that  Christ 
began  to  teach  them  that  He  their  King  would 
be  rejected  by  the  people  and  be  killed.  They 
could  not  understand  it.     Then  He  told  them 


"SUFFERED  UNDER  PONTIUS  PILATE"   85 

that  they  too  must  be  willing  to  die  as  He 
was. 

This  is  the  first  meaning  of  His  death,  the 
most  easily  understood,  to  die  for  a  cause — for 
a  kingdom.  This  is  one  of  the  experiences  of 
human  life  at  its  highest  reach,  to  be  so  devoted 
to  a  cause  as  to  die  for  it.  The  roll  of  such 
heroes  in  the  world's  history  is  long  and  splen- 
did and  leads  one  to  be  proud  of  humanity. 

A  few  days  after  this  incident  Christ  again 
taught  His  disciples  that  He  would  be  delivered 
into  the  hands  of  men  and  they  would  kill  Him. 
He  then  tells  them  of  dying  to  save  others,  as 
the  shepherd  seeks  the  lost  sheep;  and  after- 
wards He  tells  them  plainly,  "  I  lay  down  my 
life  for  the  sheep."  This  is  the  second  meaning 
of  His  death.  Here  too  human  nature  at  its 
highest  may  share  the  dying  of  Christ.  There 
are  many  instances  in  which  men  have  risked 
their  lives,  have  lost  them  in  saving  others. 
Many  a  mother  has  given  her  life  for  her  child. 
Many  a  physician  has  given  his  life  in  trying 
to  save  another. 

When  Christ  came  near  to  Jerusalem  on  His 
last  journey  to  that  city  He  again  tells  His  dis- 
ciples of  His  now  near-by  death.  And  now  He 
adds,  to  warn  them  before  of  some  harsh  fea- 
tures of  it,  the  Gentiles  would  mock  and  scourge 
and  crucify  Him.  He  now  tells  them  He  would 
so  give  His  life  as  a  ransom  for  many.     Here 


86  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

is  the  idea  of  substitution,  of  dying  in  the  place 
of  another.  This  is  the  third  meaning  of  His 
death  as  taught  by  Christ  Himself.  Here  too 
human  nature  may  rise  to  such  a  height  as  to 
share  this  kind  of  dying  with  Christ.  There  is 
something  of  this  in  the  death  of  a  soldier  for 
his  country.  There  is  something  of  this  when 
a  soldier  takes  into  his  own  breast  the  shot  that 
otherwise  would  have  struck  down  his  captain. 
When  drafting  into  the  army  was  resorted  to 
in  our  war  for  the  Union  it  sometimes  occurred 
that  a  friend  went  in  the  place  of  a  friend;  he 
took  the  place  of  the  husband  or  father  for  the 
sake  of  wife  or  children;  he  gave  his  life  a  ran- 
som— died  instead  of  another. 

Now  we  come  to  the  last  of  the  four  great 
teachings  of  Christ,  that  of  our  text.  It  is  the 
solemn  hour  of  the  last  supper.  To-morrow 
Christ  will  die  upon  the  cross.  This  is  my 
blood  of  the  covenant  which  is  shed  for  many 
for  the  remission  of  sins.  I  die  as  a  sacrifice 
for  sin.  All  the  mysterious  meaning  of  sacri- 
fice through  the  ages  is  summed  up  in  the  death 
of  Christ.  In  the  sinner's  place  He  bore  the 
penalty  of  sin ;  He  was  forsaken  of  God,  the  last 
bitter  dreg  in  His  cup  of  woe. 

In  this  He  stands  alone — man  cannot  share 
with  Him.  We  can  only  confess  our  sins,  and 
trust  Him  to  save  us  from  the  guilt  of  sin — He 
tasted  death  for  us. 


"SUFFERED  UNDER  PONTIUS  PILATE"   87 

The  Apostles  under  the  inspiration  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  and  in  the  light  of  the  resurrection 
give  us  in  the  Epistles  a  fuller  teaching  of  the 
meaning  of  Christ's  death;  but  their  words  are 
only  after  all  an  exposition  of  His  "  for  the  re- 
mission of  sins."  Peter  says,  "  He  died  the  just 
for  the  unjust  to  bring  us  to  God."  John  says, 
"  The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  cleanses  us  from  all 
sin."  Paul  says,  "  He  died  to  declare  the 
righteousness  of  God  that  he  might  be  just  and 
the  justifier  of  him  that  believeth  on  Jesus." 
A  coming  article  of  the  creed  also  teaches  more 
fully  of  the  requirements  of  the  forgiveness  of 
sin. 

We  sometimes  think  of  the  wrath  of  God 
against  sin  as  something  like  our  quick  anger 
when  provoked  and  think  it  impossible  God 
should  have  it.  We  are  right.  It  is  impossible. 
But  there  is  such  a  thing  as  righteous  indigna- 
tion in  man.  Sometimes  a  judge  in  giving  a 
sentence  is  terribly  severe,  and  we  recognize 
that  such  righteous  opposition  to  crime  is  the 
foundation  of  our  stable  government.  Purify 
this  of  all  sin,  magnify  it  in  your  utmost  thought, 
and  it  may  somewhat  resemble  the  righteous 
opposition  of  the  divine  nature  against  sin;  and 
this  too  is  the  foundation  of  our  only  hope  of 
recovery  from  sin.  So  terrible  is  it  that  Christ, 
our  substitute,  our  representative  standing  in 
our  desert  when  He  faced  it,  uttered  the  cry  of 


88  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

anguish  on  the  cross.  He  gave  up  His  life — 
He  shed  His  blood  for  the  remission  of  our 
sins. 

Some  men  think  they  are  good,  their  virtues 
will  save  them.  At  any  rate  God  will  be  in- 
dulgent to  them.  It  will  be  wise  for  all  such  to 
meditate  upon  their  character  and  prospects  in 
the  darkness  of  the  cross,  with  Christ's  cry  of 
anguish  reaching  their  souls. 

Many  trust  in  Christ  as  their  Saviour.  They 
cannot  fully  understand  the  full  meaning  of  His 
death.  But  they  know  they  should  hate  the  sin 
that  brought  such  suffering  upon  Him.  Seven 
hundred  years  ago  the  Waldenses  in  the  south 
of  France  under  persecutions  fled  to  the  hills 
and  mountains.  They  had  a  password  by  which 
they  knew  each  other  and  were  led  to  defend 
and  help  each  other  and  together  to  do  all  the 
good  they  could  to  all  men,  even  to  their  perse- 
cutors. "Will  you  do  this?"  one  asked  and 
added,  "for  the  love  of  Christ."  The  other 
replied,  "  I  will  do  it,"  and  added,  "  in  Christ's 
name." 

We  live  in  quiet  times  but  the  same  spirit 
should  fill  our  lives  all  our  days.  All  we  are, 
all  we  do,  should  be  "  for  the  love  of  Christ  and 
in  His  name." 


VII. 

Christ  was  delivered  for  our  trespasses 
and  was  raised  for  our  justification. — 
Rom.  4:  25. 

"THE  THIRD  DAY  HE  ROSE  FROM  THE 
DEAD  " 

THE  day  after  the  crucifixion  was  the 
Jewish  Sabbath  and  the  high  day  of 
their  national  feast  of  the  Passover. 
Great  multitudes  from  all  over  the  land  thronged 
the  city  streets  and  the  temple  courts;  but  the 
great  teacher,  the  great  miracle  worker  whose 
fame  was  known  to  all  and  who  had  cured  many 
of  them  and  of  their  friends  of  diseases,  they 
had  crucified;  He  was  silent  in  the  grave.  An 
awe  must  have  filled  that  Sabbath  day  from 
the  sepulchre  where  Jesus  lies  dead  and  buried. 
The  priests  ministering  in  the  Temple  see 
the  vail  hastily  repaired  of  the  rent  from  top  to 
bottom,  the  strange  memorial  of  their  seeming 
success  and  a  fear-inspiring  premonition  of 
their  dreadful  failure.  The  friends  of  Jesus, 
disheartened  and  hopeless,  mingle  with  the 
worshipping  throng  or  mourn  alone.  Some 
with  never  dying  love  long  for  the  morrow  when 

89 


90  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

they  may  visit  His  tomb.  At  length  the  dark- 
ness of  night  hushes  the  city  into  silence.  A 
light  gleams  on  Golgotha  where  around  a 
watch-fire  the  Roman  soldiers  are  sleeping 
while  their  sentinel  paces  to  and  fro  before  the 
sealed  door  of  the  sepulchre. 

The  midnight  hour  passes,  the  third  watch 
*s  set;  and  then  begins  to  dawn  upon  the  world 
its  first  Easter  morning.  The  grave  cannot 
hold  Him,  for  He  is  the  Prince  of  Life,  the  Son 
of  God,  the  Son  of  Man.  He  triumphs  over  sin, 
death  and  the  grave.  He  rises  from  the  dead 
in  His  own  power,  and  in  the  power  of  the 
Father. 

Science  with  its  great  knowledge  and  power 
has  its  limits.  It  cannot  create  life  even  in  its 
lowest  forms.  It  often  prolongs  life,  wonder- 
fully snatches  life  sometimes  from  the  edge  of 
the  grave.  But  science  cannot  restore  life. 
The  agony  of  love  and  the  skill  of  science  stand 
alike  powerless  by  the  side  of  the  dead. 

Science  in  its  methods  of  investigation,  in 
sifting  and  testing  evidence,  in  its  power  of 
detecting  fraud  has  greatly  advanced  man's 
knowledge  of  truth.  Many  things  a  more 
credulous  age  would  believe  are  set  aside  as 
doubtful  or  incredible  by  this  intelligent  age. 
Yet  here  is  a  most  wonderful  event. 

Our  article  of  the  creed  says,  "  The  third  day 
he    rose    again    from    the    dead."     The    creed 


"THE  THIRD  DAY  HE  ROSE"         91 

herein  sets  forth  a  remarkable,  well  authenti- 
cated and  important  truth  for  our  careful  con- 
sideration. 

It  is  a  most  remarkable  event.  Successive 
generations  of  the  race  of  men  have  passed  into 
the  silence  of  the  grave.  The  earth  is  encrusted 
with  graves,  and  the  grave  holds  fast  its  own. 
Jesus,  the  Son  of  Man,  lies  in  the  grave,  one  of 
the  race  of  men.  The  grave  will  surely  hold 
Him  fast. 

Materialism  stands  by  the  grave  of  Christ  as 
by  all  other  graves  with  no  hope,  only  despair. 
It  regards  human  life  as  the  highest  flower  of 
material  development,  and  death  as  the  killing 
frost  that  has  destroyed  it.  The  resurrection  of 
Christ,  as  of  any  man,  is  not  only  improbable, 
it  is  impossible.  But  materialism  need  not 
trouble  us;  it  is  false  throughout.  We  know 
we  are  something  more  than  refined  matter. 

A  skeptical  criticism  alleges  the  resurrection 
of  Christ  is  a  myth,  the  imagination  of  His  de- 
luded followers.  But  Christ  did  not  live  in  an 
age  of  myths,  but  in  an  historical  age  when  lives 
stand  out  with  great  distinctness,  long  after  the 
time  of  David  and  Isaiah,  of  Socrates  and  Alex- 
ander, of  Cicero  and  Caesar. 

Yet  this  most  remarkable  event  which  can 
be  accounted  for  only  by  the  exercise  of  super- 
natural power  is  generally  believed  in  this  in- 
telligent age.    This  can  only  be  as  the  demands 


92  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

of  science  as  to  the  needed  evidence  of  such  an 
event  are  fulfilled.  We  may  glance  at  the  gen- 
eral scope  of  such  evidence. 

While  the  event  is  astounding  there  was  no 
obscurity  connected  with  its  surroundings.  The 
powers  of  investigation  enlisted  were  sufficient 
to  establish  the  fact.  The  most  thoroughly 
equipped  scientist  of  our  day,  had  he  been  pres- 
ent, could  have  done  no  more  than  the  disciples 
did. 

Christ  was  clearly  dead.  His  friends  buried 
Him.  His  enemies  watched  His  grave.  He 
was  buried  with  the  wound  in  His  side  with 
which  it  was  impossible  that  He  should  live. 
The  spear  thrust  of  the  Roman  soldier  had 
reached  His  heart. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  about  the  death  or  the 
identity  of  Christ.  The  sepulchre  was  broken 
and  empty.  Those  who  knew  Christ  intimately 
were  convinced  of  His  risen  life.  The  doubter 
Thomas  was  convinced  with  reference  to  the 
spear  thrust.  The  life  Christ  now  lived  was  on 
the  other  side  of  the  grave,  not  a  return  to 
ordinary  conditions  to  this  life,  but  a  deathless 
resurrection  life.  The  wounded  side,  the  bar- 
riers of  man's  works,  the  limits  of  space  and  of 
vision  are  all  frankly  recognized. 

The  confidence  of  the  witnesses,  as  well  as 
their  investigation,  excludes  all  doubt.  Their 
truthfulness  of  character  is  beyond  question, 


"  THE  THIRD  DAY  HE  ROSE  "         9S 

Their  variety  of  statements  confirms  the  cen- 
tral event.  Their  disinterestedness  is  manifest; 
they  encountered  opposition  and  loss  from  the 
first  through  many  years  of  unwavering  testi- 
mony and  many  encountered  death  by  it. 

The  circumstantial  evidence  is  strong — things 
that  cannot  be  accounted  for  without  the  resur- 
rection of  Christ,  the  Christian  Church,  the 
Sunday  of  the  week,  the  observance  of  Easter 
day,  the  counting  of  the  centuries  from  the  life 
of  Christ  on  earth. 

We  need  now  to  carefully  consider  the  im- 
portance to  us,  and  to  the  whole  race  of  man- 
kind, of  the  resurrection  of  Christ. 

Tell  us  that  Socrates  rose  from  the  dead,  and 
we  answer  at  once,  It  is  not  worth  investigating. 
It  would  make  no  difference  to  us  if  he  did.  It 
would  not  prove  that  his  teachings  were  true. 
They,  as  all  teachings  of  philosophy,  arise  from 
human  reason  and  must  stand  or  fall  as  they 
appeal  to  human  reason.  Socrates  made  no 
claim  for  himself  that  needed  his  resurrection  to 
substantiate  it. 

But  Christ  did.  He  claimed  to  be  the  Son  of 
God.  Christ  was  a  great  teacher  of  most  lofty 
truths.  He  taught  "  God  is  a  spirit  and  they 
that  worship  him  must  worship  him  in  spirit 
and  in  truth."  Now  His  resurrection  from  the 
dead  does  not  prove  that.  That  teaching  stands 
on  its  own  merit;  it  appeals  to  our  reason. 


94  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

But  His  claim  to  be  the  Son  of  God  makes  His 
death  the  most  remarkable  thing.  Well  may  it 
awaken  the  wondering  adoration  of  the  angels. 
But  being  the  Son  of  God,  that  He  should  rise 
from  the  dead  is  the  most  natural  thing. 

You  remember  He  was  put  to  death  on  this 
charge.  He  stood  before  the  highest  court  of 
His  people.  The  High  Priest  put  Him  under 
oath.  "Art  thou  the  Son  of  God?"  Christ 
answered,  "  I  am."  Then  the  court  sentenced 
Him  to  death  on  the  charge  of  blasphemy,  that 
He  claimed  to  be  the  Son  of  God.  Then  as 
they  had  no  power  to  execute  Him  they  took 
Him  to  the  Roman  court.  They  charged  Him 
before  Pilate  with  claiming  to  be  King.  This 
arose  from  His  claim  to  be  the  Son  of  God,  their 
Messiah,  their  anointed  King.  Pilate  asked 
Him,  "Art  thou  a  King?"  Again  Jesus  an- 
swered, "  I  am."  Upon  this  Pilate  sentenced 
Him  to  the  cross,  for  he  knew  he  could  not  re- 
tain the  confidence  of  the  Roman  Emperor  and 
allow  a  rival  king  to  live. 

So  Christ  on  this  charge  was  crucified,  dead 
and  buried.  Had  the  grave  held  Him  fast,  had 
He  remained  dead,  the  charge  of  blasphemy  in 
claiming  to  be  the  Son  of  God  would  have  been 
proved. 

But  the  sentence  of  the  highest  courts  on 
earth  was  carried  to  the  High  Court  of  heaven, 
and  reversed.     The  third  day  He  rose  from  the 


"THE  THIRD  DAY  HE  ROSE"         9a 

dead.  He  was  proved  the  Son  of  God  with 
power  by  the  resurrection  from  the  dead,  as 
the  Apostle  Paul  declares,  and  as  we  see  at 
once  when  we  consider  the  case  carefully  and 
fully.  Surely  this  is  of  vast  importance  to  us. 
If  He  is  proved  to  be  the  Son  of  God  then  we 
should  acknowledge  Him  as  our  Lord  and  our 
God.  The  doubting  Thomas,  convinced  by  the 
resurrection,  used  that  word  of  tender  and  lov- 
ing possession  which  we  should  each  one  use, 
"  My  Lord  and  my  God." 

There  is  a  further  element  of  vast  importance 
to  us  for  our  salvation  in  the  resurrection  of 
Christ  from  the  dead.  Being  the  Son  of  God 
the  wonder  is  that  He  should  have  submitted 
Himself  to  death.  We  look  back  to  His  own 
teaching  concerning  the  meaning  of  His  death, 
as  to  the  reason  of  His  giving  up  His  life  for 
us.  He  died  for  a  cause  as  other  men  do;  He 
died  in  His  effort  to  save,  as  others  do;  He  died 
as  a  ransom  in  place  of  another,  as  other  men 
do.  In  all  these  He  is  an  inciting  example  to 
us,  to  live  worthily  and  die  bravely  for  Him  and 
in  the  service  of  our  fellow  men.  He  lives 
again  as  our  leader,  and  we  may  follow  Him. 

But  you  remember  another  of  His  teachings 
as  to  the  meaning  of  His  death.  This  formed 
the  terror  and  hardship  of  His  dying  which 
pressed  out  the  prayer  to  the  Father  in  Geth- 
semane.     This  explains  the  terrible  blackness  of 


96  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

His  death  which  pressed  out  of  His  breaking 
heart  upon  the  cross  the  cry,  "  My  God,  why 
hast  thou  forsaken  me?  "  He  taught  that  His 
death  was  a  sacrifice  for  sin,  His  blood  was  shed 
for  the  remission  of  sin.  He  died  as  a  sacrifice 
to  save  sinners,  to  save  us. 

Now  the  question  of  supreme  importance  to 
us  is,  Has  God  accepted  that  sacrifice?  The 
resurrection  of  Christ  from  the  dead  is  the  con- 
clusive answer.  He  is  indeed  the  Lamb  of 
God,  as  John  the  forerunner  said  at  the  be- 
ginning—" He  is  the  Lamb  of  God  that  taketh 
away  the  sin  of  the  world."  Jesus,  He  saves 
His  people  from  their  sins.  He  has  borne  the 
curse  of  sin.  He  as  a  representative  of  His 
people  has  offered  Himself  a  sacrifice  for  their 
sins.  He  died  upon  the  cross;  His  body  was 
broken,  His  blood  shed  for  them.  God  has  ac- 
cepted this  sacrifice.  All  the  claims  of  the  law 
are  fully  satisfied,  for  God  raised  Him  from  the 
dead. 

These  are  the  two  great  facts  involved  in  the 
resurrection  of  Christ,  the  two  great  truths 
proved  by  it.  First,  He  is  the  Son  of  God. 
Second,  His  sacrifice  for  the  sin  of  the  world 
has  been  accepted  by  God. 

Now  let  me  ask  a  personal  question.  Of 
course  the  answer  to  the  question  will  depend 
largely  upon  of  whom  it  is  asked.  I  will  ask  it 
therefore  of  two  great  classes  of  people.     First 


"THE  THIRD  DAY  HE  ROSE"         97 

I  will  ask  that  large  class  who  are  indifferent  to 
religion.  Many  are  moral,  intelligent,  cultured 
but  still  they  are  largely  irreligious. 

What  profit  have  you  received  from  the  resur- 
rection of  Christ?  The  answer  is  prompt  and 
clear.  Why,  none  at  all.  So  I  will  ask  another 
question.  What  profit  have  you  received  from 
the  constitutional  convention  of  1787?  The 
answer  is  prompt  and  clear.  Why,  none  at  all. 
I  never  heard  of  it.  Surely  in  both  cases  it  is 
a  thoughtless  answer — and  in  the  first  case  far 
more  so  than  in  the  second.  We  owe  it  to  the 
wisdom  of  that  convention  that  we  live  under 
the  best  government  ever  devised  by  man. 
True,  the  convention  did  not  build  your  house, 
or  spread  your  table,  or  make  your  clothes,  or 
form  your  business  and  social  relations.  Never- 
theless all  these  would  have  been  far  different 
if  it  had  not  been  for  the  work  of  that  conven- 
tion. So  you  have  great  profit  from  the  resur- 
rection of  Christ.  You  live  in  a  Christian  land, 
you  share  in  the  material,  intellectual,  moral 
and  spiritual  advancement  which  is  being 
brought  about  by  the  risen  Son  of  God.  There 
is  a  great  variety  of  character  and  influence 
among  His  followers  to-day  as  in  past  ages,  but 
however  far  off  and  haltingly  they  have  followed 
Him  they  have  made  Christian  lands  far  better 
for  the  average  man  to  live  in  than  are  any 
other  lands :  and  the  more  Christian  they  are 


98  THE  APOSTLES'  CKEED 

the  better  they  are.  Priceless,  countless  bless- 
ings you  enjoy  to-day  from  living  under  the 
enlarging  influence  of  the  Son  of  God  who  rose 
from  the  dead.  Still  you  are  not  saved.  How- 
ever many  blessings  you  now  enjoy  from  Him, 
you  are  depriving  yourself  of  far  greater  by 
not  believing  in  Christ.  Perhaps  in  this  too 
you  are  simply  thoughtless;  you  have  not  con- 
sidered the  matter.  So  now  that  you  may  con- 
sider what  you  are  missing  I  will  ask  this  same 
question  of  an  earnest  believer  in  Christ.  The 
answer  of  course  will  be  of  faith.  They  will 
not  be  benefits  one  can  handle  or  estimate  their 
value  in  worldly  coin;  they  are  spiritual  benefits 
and  as  such  are  of  greater  value  than  can  be 
measured  by  any  money  standard. 

What  profit,  oh  believer  in  Christ,  what  profit 
have  you  received  from  the  resurrection  of 
Christ?  The  answer  is  prompt  and  clear.  My 
first  profit  is  a  change  of  condition,  great  and 
glorious. 

We  live  under  an  excellent  government  in 
our  free  country.  But  all  the  excellency  of  the 
government  while  it  protects  and  blesses  the 
good  citizen  is  arrayed  against  the  disobedient, 
the  lawbreaker.  So  the  strong  and  excellent 
Divine  government  is  against  the  sinner.  My 
conscience  recognizes  some  little,  not  fully,  that 
I  am  a  sinner.  My  natural  condition  then  was 
that  I  was  under  the  condemnation  of  this  good 


"THE  THIRD  DAY  HE  ROSE"         99 

government   of   God.     But   now    I    believe    in 
Christ.     As  my  representative  He  obeyed  the 
law  of  God  perfectly  and  is  entitled  to  all  the 
rewards   of  obedience.     As   my   representative 
He  bore  the  terrible  curse  of  sin,  all  that  I  de- 
served, and  His  bearing  my  curse  has  been  ac- 
cepted of  God.     Those  represented  in  another 
share  the  act  and  fate  of  their  representative. 
This  runs  through  the  character  of  the  race  of 
man.     So  I  trusting  in  Him  share  in  His  act  and 
fate.     The  law  has  no  longer  any  penalty  for 
me.     He  has  borne  it  all.     I  am  entitled  to  all 
the  rewards  of  obedience,  the  favour  of  God  and 
eternal  life.     He  has  deserved  it  all,  and  for  me. 
I  cannot  fully  understand  it;  it  is  beyond  my 
power  of  appreciation.     Throughout  eternity  I 
will  learn  of  it,  and  praise  and  love  Him  for  His 
blood-bought  salvation.     My  change  of  condi- 
tion is  from  condemnation  to  justification  and  it 
is  through  the  resurrection  of  Christ.     He  was 
delivered  for  our  offences;  but  has  His  work 
been   accepted,   is   it   sufficient   to  justify   us? 
Yes,  He  has  been  raised  from   the  dead:  the 
whole  debt  is  paid,  the  whole  reward  is  won. 
As  the  text  says,  "  Christ  was  delivered  for  our 
offences  and  raised  again  for  our  justification." 
My  second  profit  is  a  change  of  character. 
My  Saviour  lives  and  makes  me  share  His  life 
as  I  trust  in  Him.     In  my  natural  state  while 
I  could  see  the  good  and  approve  it,  the  bent 


100  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

of  my  character  was  sinful.  I  am  still  far  short 
of  perfect  obedience;  but  I  love  Christ,  admire, 
adore  and  serve  Him.  I  have  been  raised  to  a 
new  life  in  Him.  He  is  my  living  Lord  and 
lives  in  me  and  I  in  Him.  He  applies  to  me  His 
blood-bought  salvation.  As  He  rose  from  the 
dead  so  He  raises  me  to  a  new  life.  This  new 
life  has  new  aims,  new  motives,  new  sustenance, 
new  hopes,  and  these  are  all  from  the  risen 
Lord. 

My  third  profit  is  the  well  assured  anticipa- 
tion of  a  glorious  future.  Death  is  no  longer 
the  frown  of  God  on  sin,  but  the  smile  of  Christ 
welcoming  me  to  His  presence.  As  Christ  has 
passed  through  the  grave  and  waits  me  on  the 
other  side  so  I  am  confident  His  resurrection  is 
a.  pledge  and  an  illustration  of  mine. 

All  these  benefits  I  receive  from  trusting  in 
Christ. 

So  the  believer  commends  the  Son  of  God,  the 
Saviour  of  sinners,  to  the  sinful  world.  What 
He  has  done  for  me,  what  He  is  to  me,  what  He 
promises  to  me — all  this  He  will  be  and  do  for 
every  one  who  trusts  Him. 


VIII. 

And  it  came  to  pass  while  he  blessed  them 
he  parted  from  them  and  was  carried  up  into 
heaven. — Luke  24:  51. 

"HE   ASCENDED   INTO   HEAVEN   AND 

SITTETH  AT  THE  RIGHT  HAND  OF 

GOD  THE  FATHER  ALMIGHTY  " 

IT  is  stated  that  our  Lord  remained  on  earth 
forty  days  after  His  resurrection,  during 
which  time  He  appeared  unto  His  dis- 
ciples and  taught  them  concerning  His  king- 
dom. We  have  an  account  of  ten  such  appear- 
ances and  some  record  of  His  teaching.  But 
He  did  not  dwell  with  His  disciples  as  of  old; 
He  appeared  and  disappeared  to  His  chosen 
ones  at  His  pleasure  and  in  widely  separated 
places,  and  was  not  subject  to  the  conditions 
of  our  usual  life. 

There  is  deep  significance  in  His  non-appear- 
ances as  well  as  His  appearances.  He  did  not 
appear  to  the  soldiers  who  guarded  the  tomb 
to  convince  them  of  His  identity;  they  had 
scarcely  known  Him.  He  did  not  appear  to 
Pilate  to  satisfy  his  idle  curiosity  concerning 
truth.      He  did  not  summon  His  judges  into 

IOI 


102  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

His  presence — the  High  Priest  and  the  Phari- 
sees, His  willful  enemies;  nor  did  He  appear  to 
the  indifferent  mob.  He  had  taught  and  warned 
all  these  solemnly  and  earnestly,  and  now  He 
passes  them  by  in  silence,  a  silence  more  im- 
pressive than  any  spoken  word.  But  He  ap- 
peared often  and  tenderly  to  those  who  had 
listened  to  His  teachings,  who  knew  Him  well 
and  who  loved  Him,  and  who  could  bear  wit- 
ness of  Him  to  all  others  whom  they  could  in- 
terest in  Him. 

Then  came  His  last  day  on  this  earth.  He 
had  returned  from  Galilee  to  Jerusalem.  He 
leads  a  company  of  His  disciples  through  the 
streets,  out  of  a  gate  of  the  city,  across  the 
brook  Kidron,  past  the  Garden  of  Gethsemane, 
up  the  Mount  of  Olives  to  its  top  towards  Beth- 
any. Then  He  lifted  up  His  hands  and  blessed 
them;  He  was  parted  from  them  and  was  car- 
ried up  into  heaven.  Could  there  be  a  more 
unadorned  account  of  such  a  stupendous  event? 
Even  by  our  inspired  writer  it  is  the  very  sim- 
plicity of  truth.  Earth  could  no  longer  hold 
Him;  He  yielded  to  the  power  of  the  yearning 
heavens.  They  listen  to  the  words  of  blessing 
dying  away  in  the  distance.  They  strain  their 
eyes  to  catch  a  last  glimpse  of  His  look  of  part- 
ing love. 

Who  can  imagine  His  reception  beyond  the 
cloud,     the    angelic    escort,    the    outburst    of 


"HE  ASCENDED  INTO  HEAVEN"    103 

heavenly  praise,  the  throne  of  glory?  They 
never  saw  His  face  again  until  each  one  in  turn 
awoke  in  His  presence  in  that  heavenly  land 
and  was  satisfied. 

Our  religion  is  based  on  facts.  Our  convic- 
tions, our  principles  and  feelings  binding  us  to 
God  are  based  upon  the  facts  of  His  revelation 
in  nature  and  in  His  holy  Word.  The  tests  of 
an  alleged  fact  are  the  same  in  all  departments 
of  truth,  and  it  is  so  with  the  fact  of  the  ascen- 
sion of  Christ.  There  are  three  tests.  First, 
a  fact  must  be  attested  by  careful  and  truthful 
observers.  The  disciples  who  attest  both  the 
resurrection  and  the  ascension  of  Christ  are, 
we  have  seen,  such  observers.  Second,  it  must 
be  in  harmony  with  other  facts  of  the  same  class. 
Third,  it  must  be  followed  by  its  own  conse- 
quences, facts  that  cannot  be  accounted  for 
without  it. 

These  last  two  tests  deserve  our  careful  at- 
tention. The  ascension  of  Christ  is  in  harmony 
with  all  other  known  truth  of  existence  and  of 
personality.  There  are  great  mysteries  in  our 
religion,  but  they  are  not  like  the  mysteries  of 
other  religions,  trivial  matters  bewildering  the 
mind  only  to  degrade  it;  these  are  of  infinite 
subjects,  and  their  study  enlarges  and  elevates 
the  mind  and  quickens  reverence  and  true  piety. 
They  are  mysteries  simply  because  they  are 
lines  of  truth  running  out  beyond  our  power  of 


104  THE  APOSTLES'  CEEED 

mind  to  fully  follow  them ;  they  are  beyond  our 
comprehension,  but  in  lines  with  all  we  know, 
lines  going  out  into  infinity. 

The  believer  is  filled  with  awe  as  he  stands 
in  the  presence  of  immensity.  With  bared  head 
on  a  cloudless  summer  night  he  stands  under 
the  mystery  of  the  starry  heavens;  from  the  lit- 
tle ball  of  the  earth  he  looks  off  upon  blazing 
suns  in  the  infinity  of  space.  That  little  twink- 
ling star  yonder  he  knows  is  a  sun  many  times  as 
large  as  his  own  sun  that  a  few  hours  ago  made 
the  western  sky  beautiful  with  its  declining 
beams — a  sun  so  large  and  at  the  same  time  so 
far  away  that  he  can  only  see  a  flash  of  light 
that  has  taken  many  thousand  years  to  reach 
his  eyes.  Should  there  be  a  planet  revolving 
around  that  great  sun,  and  intelligent  beings 
upon  it  with  like  powers  as  his,  as  is  quite  prob- 
able, they  could  not  see  his  earth,  or  even  his 
sun,  so  small  is  it  and  so  far  away  from  their 
eyes.  This  believer,  this  little  being  on  this 
little  earth  is  facing  the  mystery  of  existence, 
for  the  whole  heaven  is  full  of  blazing  suns,  and 
he  knows  that  beyond  these  heavens,  visible  to 
his  unaided  eye,  there  stretches  away  on  every 
side  and  above  and  below  an  infinity  of  space  in 
which  are  many  such  suns ;  and  that  in  this  im- 
mensity of  space  he  is  floating  on  his  little  earth 
upheld  by  the  Almighty  Father,  maker  of 
heaven  and  earth. 


"HE  ASCENDED  INTO  HEAVEN"    105 

He  turns  now  to  his  Bible  and  it  tells  him  of 
a  place  where  angels  and  saints  have  their 
home  and  where  God  specially  manifests  His 
presence,  where  is,  as  it  were,  His  throne;  and 
now  the  first  thought  of  his  faith  is  that  these 
blazing  suns  are  the  outposts,  the  sentinels  of 
that  place  of  God's  throne,  that  place  of  light 
and  glory. 

Into  this  heaven,  the  palace  of  the  great 
King,  of  which  the  starry  heaven  is  but  the 
gem  spangled  doorway,  Jesus,  our  King,  has 
ascended.  Into  this  heaven,  the  temple  of  the 
Holy  God,  of  which  the  starry  heaven  is  the 
magnificent  portico,  Jesus  our  High  Priest  has 
ascended.  Into  this  heaven,  the  splendid  grove 
of  loftiest  philosophy  lighted  by  blazing  suns, 
Jesus,  our  Teacher,  has  ascended;  and  our 
thoughts  simply  follow  Him.  True,  science 
tells  us  the  multitude  of  stars  are  not  moving  in 
great  circles  around  a  great  center;  that  all, 
our  own  sun  and  its  planets  with  the  others,  are 
moving  in  various  directions  and  in  wavering 
lines ;  but  the  calculation  is  not  complete.  True, 
science  tells  us  the  utmost  rapidity  of  flight,  if 
as  fast  as  the  light  flies,  would  require  thou- 
sands of  years  to  reach  that  central  palace. 
But  there  is  one  thing  that  flies  faster  than 
light;  our  thought  flies  so.  We  are  here  one 
second,  the  next  we  are  in  that  far-off  sun: 
why  may  not  the  spirit  fly  with  the  speed  of  its 


106  THE  APOSTLES'  CEEED 

thought  when  released  from  its  earthly  con- 
ditions? True,  heaven,  the  throne  room  of  the 
great  King,  may  be  very  near  to  us  now,  only 
we  have  no  powers  with  which  to  know  its 
presence — our  eyes  see  only  the  light  of  the 
sun,  but  the  light  and  glory  of  God's  throne  may 
be  far  beyond  our  power  of  seeing,  or  of  any 
other  powers  we  possess,  which  are  suited  only 
to  these  material  surroundings.  True,  the 
Bible  tells  us  God  is  a  Spirit;  He  has  no  visible 
form;  a  pure  spirit  has  no  right  hand.  A  great 
teacher  has  always  to  accommodate  his  state- 
ments to  the  condition  of  his  scholars.  We 
have  right  hands.  All  there  comes  to  us  in  that 
familiar  fact,  of  power,  of  favour,  may  be 
ascribed  to  God. 

Heaven  is  not  fully  described  in  the  Bible, 
simply  because  it  cannot  be.  Whatever  descrip- 
tions are  given  to  us  must  be  in  terms  we  un- 
derstand, in  terms  of  our  earthly  experience. 
Using  these  terms  heaven  is  a  place  of  light  and 
glory,  the  abode  of  angels  and  saints,  the  place 
where  God  manifests  His  special  presence,  the 
place  of  His  throne.  Into  this  heaven  Jesus, 
the  risen  Son  of  God  and  Son  of  Man,  our  Lord, 
ascended.  And  there  He  is  now  seated  at  the 
right  hand  of  God  the  Father.  All  the  mystery 
of  it  is  in  full  harmony  with  all  the  known  truth 
of  existence.     The  Son  of  God  is  at  home  again. 

So  the  ascension  of  Christ  is  in  harmony  with 


"HE  ASCENDED  INTO  HEAVEN"     101 

all  the  known  truth  of  personality.  We  know 
of  personality  only  from  ourselves.  There  are 
different  natures  in  our  persons — physical,  men- 
tal, spiritual;  widely  different  as  they  are  we 
speak  of  each  personally.  I  am  hungry.  I  am 
tired  and  must  sleep;  I  think,  I  feel;  so  I  aspire, 
I  adore.  Now  we  go  a  step  farther,  but  it  is  a 
stupendous  step.  We  say  of  Jesus  Christ  that 
in  Him  the  divine  nature  assumed  the  human 
nature,  the  Son  of  God  became  the  Son  of  Man 
in  one  person. 

The  Son  of  God  dwelling  through  eternity  in 
the  glory  of  the  heavens  saw  on  this  far-off 
earth  a  race  of  intelligent  beings  involved  in 
the  corrupting  power  and  the  terrible  guilt  of 
sin,  and  He  yearned  over  them  in  His  infinite 
love.  So  He  came  to  this  earth  with  the  sole 
purpose  to  save  sinners.  Of  all  beings  who 
have  ever  lived  upon  this  earth  He  is  the  only 
one  who  came  with  a  conscious  purpose.  All 
of  us  children  of  men  came  here  without  the 
choice  of  our  wills.  Of  all  the  countless  planets 
in  the  wide  universe  of  God  inhabited  by  kindred 
races  of  intelligent  beings  this  may  be  the  only 
one  where  dwells  a  race  of  sinners.  What  effect 
the  salvation  of  our  race  may  have  upon  these 
other  races,  if  such  there  be,  we  cannot  tell. 
Suffice  it  the  Son  of  God  took  upon  Himself 
our  nature  and  became  the  person  Jesus  Christ 
that  He  might  save  us  from  our  sins. 


108  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

We  often  speak  of  the  humiliation  of  Jesus 
Christ.  Wherein  did  it  consist?  Not  in  His 
poverty;  many  noble  men  have  been  poor. 
Nor  in  His  limitations  to  a  single  age  and  land; 
many  great  men  have  been  so  limited.  His 
humility,  strange  as  it  may  seem  to  us,  was  in 
His  becoming  a  man  at  all.  He,  the  glorious 
Son  of  God,  the  creator  of  all  the  wide  universe, 
took  upon  Himself  the  nature  of  His  creature: 
we  cannot  fathom  the  depth  of  this  humiliation. 
We  speak  of  the  sacrifice  of  Christ  upon  the 
cross  as  voluntary.     Wherein  was  it  voluntary? 

We  see  Him  led  to  the  cross  by  armed 
Romans  and  surrounded  by  a  passionate  mob. 
What  stronger  power  than  the  world  empire 
and  a  multitude  of  unreasoning  men  can  we 
imagine,  and  He  is  in  their  power.  Now  let 
the  light  of  the  ascension  of  Christ  fall  upon  the 
Roman  spears  and  upon  the  angry  faces  of  the 
mob  and  we  see  at  once  that  had  He  chosen 
to  ascend  from  the  foot  of  the  cross  all  the 
powers  of  the  world  combined  would  have  been 
unable  to  hold  Him.  It  could  as  easily  have 
grasped  the  stars  and  dragged  them  from  their 
courses.  He  the  Son  of  God  in  the  person  of 
Jesus  Christ  had  the  right,  and  the  love  of  sin- 
ners, to  make  the  sacrifice  of  Himself  upon  the 
cross.  Herein  also  lies  the  value  of  His  sacri- 
fice, to  atone  for  the  sins  of  the  world.  Herein 
also  is  seen  the  glory  of  the  resurrection.     He 


"  HE  ASCENDED  INTO  HEAVEN  "    109 

rises  from  the  dead  by  His  own  power,  and  that 
of  His  Father;  His  sacrifice  is  accepted.  It 
would  have  been  manifestly  improper  for  the 
glorious  Son  of  God  to  remain  upon  this  earth, 
His  work  being  accomplished,  or  for  Him  to 
die  again  as  men  do.  He  arose  to  a  life  be- 
yond the  grave.  Hence  the  ascension  of  Christ 
is  in  full  harmony  with  the  glory  of  His  person 
and  work.  He  returned  triumphant  to  the 
throne  of  God  in  heaven. 

His  work  of  sacrifice  for  sin  was  fully  ac- 
complished and  accepted  and  now  He  ascends 
to  the  throne  of  God  in  heaven,  and  as  He 
ascended  "  He  led  captivity  captive  and  gave 
gifts  unto  men,  that  the  Lord  God  might  dwell 
among  them." 

When  Christ  commissioned  His  disciples  to 
preach  His  Gospel  to  all  men  He  promised  to 
be  with  them  always  to  the  end  of  the  world; 
He  would  lead,  guard  and  cheer  them  with  His 
presence.  There  are  expressions  in  Scripture 
which  describe  the  relation  of  Christ  to  the  be- 
liever as  so  intimate  that  He  dwells  in  them. 
"  Christ  in  you  the  hope  of  glory."  We  often 
say  that  Christ  while  on  earth  was  limited  in 
space,  but  now  is  everywhere  present.  The  mys- 
tery of  personality  is  by  no  means  ended  by  the 
ascension  of  Christ.  The  human  nature  of 
Christ  was  not  endowed  with  the  qualities  of 
the  divine  nature  so  that  it  could  be  every- 


110  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

where  present.  But  neither  was  the  divine  na- 
ture limited  by  the  human  nature,  so  it  was 
confined  to  a  particular  place.  The  physical 
man  is  confined  to  a  particular  place  but  he  has 
other  power  and  we  know  the  thought  and 
feeling  powers  of  a  person,  a  man,  cannot  be 
localized,  and  it  is  human  nature  with  its  many 
rich,  divinely  given  qualities  that  the  divine 
nature  assumed.  So  that  which  can  be  said  of 
either  the  divine  nature  or  the  human  nature 
is  said  of  the  person  Jesus  Christ.  Thus  it  was 
that  Christ  spoke  of  Himself  when  on  earth: 
"  Before  Abraham  was  I  am."  Again,  "  The 
Son  of  Man  which  is  in  heaven,"  and  again  to 
Nathaniel,  "  When  thou  wast  under  the  fig  tree 
I  saw  thee." 

So  our  Lord  at  the  right  hand  of  the  throne 
of  God  to-day  is  a  true  man  in  every  sense  of 
the  word  as  He  was  when  He  lived  here  upon 
the  earth.  The  heart  which  beat  in  sympathy 
with  human  hearts  in  their  infirmities  and  sor- 
rows, which  reached  down  to  the  fallen,  yearn- 
ing to  save  them,  which  grieved  over  the  im- 
penitent and  hardened,  which  welcomed  the 
penitent  and  trustful,  is  the  same  divinely  hu- 
man heart  to-day  in  heaven.  The  hand  that 
touched  the  eyes  of  the  blind  and  they  saw, 
that  touched  the  leper  and  he  was  cleansed,  now 
holds  the  scepter  of  glory  and  power.  Just  as 
truly  the  person  Jesus  Christ  is  present  with  us 


"HE  ASCENDED  INTO  HEAVEN"     111 

now  and  always  by  His  divine  nature,  having 
divinely  human  love  and  sympathy  for  us  in  all 
the  experiences  of  this  life. 

The  ascension  of  Christ,  besides  being  in 
harmony  with  all  known  truth  of  existence  and 
of  personality,  also  meets  the  third  test  of  truth. 
It  is  followed  by  its  own  consequences,  by  facts 
that  cannot  be  accounted  for  without  it.  Our 
Lord  in  His  last  discourse  with  His  disciples 
on  the  night  before  His  death  said,  "  It  is  ex- 
pedient for  you  that  I  go  away,  that  the  Com- 
forter, the  near  caller,  the  Holy  Spirit,  may 
come  upon  you  for  I  will  send  him  unto  you." 
Then  follows  the  description  of  what  the  Holy 
Spirit  will  do  in  the  world.  On  the  day  of 
Pentecost  the  Apostle  Peter  accounted  for  the 
marvellous  gifts  of  speech  and  for  the  consecra- 
tion of  believers  by  telling  the  people  and  their 
rulers  that  Jesus  Christ  whom  they  had  cruci- 
fied had  been  exalted  by  the  right  hand  of  God, 
and  had  poured  out  the  Holy  Spirit  upon  the 
people.  The  birth  and  growth  of  Christian 
character  and  influence,  and  of  the  Christian 
Church  are  accounted  for  not  only  or  mainly 
by  the  belief  in  the  resurrection  and  ascension 
of  Christ,  but  by  the  facts  believed  in  as  well. 
Jesus  Christ  is  at  the  right  hand  of  God  in 
heaven,  and  so  by  His  Spirit  He  is  present 
with  the  believer  and  with  His  Church  in  all 
ages  and  in  the  whole  earth. 


112  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

Thus  we  see  in  the  light  of  the  ascension  of 
Christ  what  is  the  true  belief  in  Him.  We  are 
apt  sometimes  to  think  it  is  like  a  belief  in  any 
historical  character  who  has  lived,  taught  and 
passed  away.  We  sometimes  think  it  is  admir- 
ing His  life,  understanding  His  teachings  and 
influence,  even  understanding  something  of  the 
meaning  of  His  death.  It  is  all  this,  and  far 
more.  It  is  the  personal  trust  of  a  needy  soul 
in  a  living  and  present  and  ruling  Saviour.  He 
is  with  us  now  by  His  spirit  and  in  His  provi- 
dence; He  has  divinely  human  love  and  sym- 
pathy for  us  in  all  our  varied  experiences.  The 
believer  recognizes  that  while  he  trusts  and 
loves  Christ,  while  he  tries  to  live  in  the  service 
of  God  in  true  thankfulness  there  is  much  im- 
perfection in  him;  even  his  aspirations,  his 
prayers  are  imperfect.  He  recognizes  as  well 
that  Christ  is  now  in  heaven,  his  advocate 
with  the  Father,  and  that  His  righteousness 
awaits  for  him,  that  it  covers  all  his  imperfec- 
tions, and  is  the  full  assurance  that  he  shall  at 
length  be  presented  "  holy  and  without  blemish 
and  unreprovable  before  him";  that  as  Christ 
so  loved  us  that  He  died  for  us,  just  as  truly  He 
loves  us  now  and  lives  for  us;  as  the  Apostle 
Paul  says,  "  We  shall  be  saved  by  his  life." 

The  ascension  of  Christ  thus  brings  the  un- 
seen and  eternal  world  near  to  us.  How  near 
it  must  have  been  to  His  disciples!     They  saw 


"HE  ASCENDED  INTO  HEAVEN"    113 

Him  ascend,  they  knew  He  still  existed;  His 
messengers,  the  two  men  in  white  apparel,  were 
at  once  by  their  side.  Henceforth  the  heavens 
had  a  new  meaning  for  them ;  it  was  very  near 
by,  though  they  were  unable  to  see  its  full  glory. 
Their  own  lives  were  enlarged  and  ennobled  as 
they  thought  of  entering  heaven.  Jesus  Him- 
self had  told  them,  "  I  go  to  prepare  a  place  for 
you,  and  I  will  come  again  for  you — that  where 
I  am  there  ye  may  be  also."  Where  is 
heaven?  We  know  not.  Our  earth  seems 
small  compared  with  the  great  universe,  still  it 
is  a  part  of  it.  Our  lives  may  seem  to  us  small 
compared  with  the  heavenly  life,  but  in  our 
small  duties,  and  it  may  be  heavy  trials,  we  have 
the  divine  companionship  of  the  living  Saviour. 
With  Christ,  His  mission  to  the  earth,  His  de- 
parture to  the  heavens,  the  unseen  and  eternal 
are  brought  near  to  us  and  our  lives  too  are 
enlarged  and  ennobled.  Where  is  heaven?  It 
is  a  place  where  Christ  is.  What  is  heaven? 
It  is  a  condition.  To  be  like  Christ.  To  be 
like  Christ  and  to  be  with  Christ,  this  is  our 
heaven.  We  have  a  foretaste  now,  and  the  full 
glorious  fruition  awaits  our  awaking  from  the 
sleep  of  death,  in  His  glorious  presence. 


IX. 

When  the  Son  of  man  shall  come  in  his 

glory  and  all  the  angels  with  him,  then  shall 

he  sit  on  the  throne  of  his  glory:  and  before 

him  shall  be  gathered  all  the  nations.     .     .     . 

— Matt.  25:  31-46. 

"  FROM  THENCE  HE  SHALL  COME  TO 
JUDGE  THE  QUICK  AND  THE  DEAD  " 

THE  last  clause  of  the  Apostles'  Creed 
concerning  Jesus  Christ  states  that  He 
will  come  again  to  the  earth  from  the 
throne  in  heaven,  and  this  time  it  will  be  to 
judge  the  living  and  the  dead. 

There  are  many  passages  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment that  teach  this  coming  of  Christ  to  be  the 
judge  of  the  race  of  mankind,  and  many  more 
which  are  based  upon  it.  It  may  be  well  for  us 
to  bear  these  in  mind  while  we  direct  our  atten- 
tion mainly  to  the  teaching  of  Christ  Himself 
on  this  subject. 

Let  us  then  consider  the  Last  Judgment  as 
described  by  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  the 
twenty-fifth  chapter  of  Matthew's  Gospel. 

The  prevailing  impression  to-day  is  that  this 
subject    should    be    addressed    to    unbelievers, 

114 


"HE  SHALL  COME  TO  JUDGE"      115 

especially  to  great  sinners  to  arouse  them  to 
seek  salvation.  But  we  note  at  once  that  this 
description  was  spoken  by  Christ  to  His  own 
disciples.  He  had  ended  His  ministry  of  teach- 
ing the  people,  He  had  denounced  in  terrible 
terms  the  false  religious  leaders,  He  had  taken 
His  farewell  of  the  Temple.  Now  He  is  speak- 
ing to  His  disciples  on  the  Mount  of  Olives, 
overlooking  the  city  as  they  are  on  their  way 
to  Bethany.  It  was  a  solemn  hour  of  His  life ; 
He  was  within  two  days  of  the  cross.  He  has 
foretold  the  destruction  of  the  Temple,  and  in 
answering  the  questions  of  His  disciples  He 
describes  the  future  time  ending  in  His  second 
coming  to  the  earth.  He  speaks  striking  para- 
bles concerning  mainly  the  judgment  of  His 
followers.  Parables  cease  and  this  description 
of  His  coming  to  judge  the  world  closes  His 
teaching  of  His  disciples  concerning  future 
time. 

We  see  the  design  of  Christ  therefore  was  to 
incite  His  followers  first  of  all  to  faithfulness 
and  perseverance,  and  so  all  His  followers  in 
the  ages  to  come:  and  thus  through  their  lives 
and  teachings  to  quicken  and  impress  the  con- 
science of  all  mankind  and  so  lead  them  to  seek 
salvation  in  Him.  It  will  be  well  for  us  to  bear 
this  in  mind  throughout  our  meditation  on  this 
stupendous  theme. 

It  is  evidently  the  description  of  the  General 


116  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

Judgment.  "  The  Son  of  Man  shall  come  in 
his  glory,  and  all  the  angels  with  him,  then 
shall  he  sit  on  the  throne  of  his  glory :  and  be- 
fore him  shall  be  gathered  all  the  nations." 

We  are  to  distinguish  clearly  the  present  from 
the  future  and  are  not  to  forget  for  an  instant 
that  Christ  is  now  ruling  and  judging  the  world 
and  each  one  of  us.  His  judgment  agencies  are 
now  hovering  over  sin  ripe  for  condemnation  as 
the  vultures  hover  over  their  prey.  The 
dominion  of  Christ  is  being  increasingly  exer- 
cised and  will  be  unto  the  end.  Just  as  truly  the 
end  will  come  in  the  General  Judgment.  So 
we  are  not  to  forget  for  an  instant  the  particular 
judgment  of  each  one  at  death.  The  parable 
of  Dives  and  Lazarus  implies  an  individual 
judgment  at  death  as  do  the  words  of  Christ 
upon  the  cross  to  the  penitent  thief,  "  To-day 
thou  shalt  be  with  me  in  Paradise."  The  im- 
penitent, unforgiven  sinner  passes  at  his  death 
into  perdition  while  the  believer  can  say  with 
the  great  Apostle  to  the  Gentiles,  "  absent  from 
the  body,  present  with  the  Lord."  "  I  have  a 
desire  to  depart  and  to  be  with  Christ,  which  is 
far  better." 

There  are  two  stupendous  events  clearly  set 
forth  as  accompanying  the  coming  of  Christ  to 
the  General  Judgment.  The  Apostle  Paul 
speaks  to  the  Athenians  of  "  a  day  in  which 
Christ  will  judge  the  world  in  righteousness/' 


"HE  SHALL  COME  TO  JUDGE"     117 

and  again  he  writes,  "  that  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  will  judge  the  quick  and  dead  at  his  ap- 
pearing," and  again,  "  that  we  must  all  appear 
before  the  judgment  seat  of  Christ."  "  The 
world,"  "  the  quick  and  the  dead,"  and  "  we 
must  all  appear,"  as  well  as  Christ's  own  descrip- 
tion imply  that  great  truth  taught  so  clearly  in 
the  Scripture — the  Resurrection  of  the  dead, 
some  to  shame  and  everlasting  contempt,  and 
some  to  everlasting  life.  Identity  and  change 
are  the  two  seemingly  conflicting  truths  of  the 
Resurrection  as  taught  in  the  Scriptures.  The 
identity  will  be  as  real  as  between  the  babe  in 
the  cradle  and  the  man  of  mature  mind,  as  be- 
tween the  seed  and  the  flower — and  the  change 
will  be  as  inconceivable.  A  following  article 
of  the  Apostles'  Creed  will  bring  this  great 
subject  to  our  consideration  by  itself.  Only 
now  it  is  necessary  for  us  to  contemplate  the 
successive  generations  of  mankind  assembled 
before  Christ  at  the  day  of  the  General  Judg- 
ment. Let  us  not  think  of  the  day  itself  as  any 
twenty-four  hour  day  or  small  period  of  time. 
There  is  no  haste  in  any  of  the  works  of  God, 
no  neglect  or  confusion  incident  to  hurry;  "  one 
day  is  with  the  Lord  as  a  thousand  years  and  a 
thousand  years  as  one  day."  The  day  of  judg- 
ment will  be  like  the  day  of  creation,  like  the  day 
of  grace  in  which  we  live.  There  will  be  ample 
time  given  to  the  judgment  of  the  race  of  man- 


118  THE  APOSTLES'  CKEED 

kind,  when  the  living  and  the  dead  shall  stand 
before  the  great  white  throne  of  the  righteous 
Judge.  Time  is  however  not  the  main  thought, 
for  the  Judge  will  know  all  the  life  and  the  in- 
ward character  of  each  one  fully  without  further 
need  of  examination. 

The  second  stupendous  event  associated  with 
the  General  Judgment  in  the  Scripture  is  the 
destruction  of  the  earth  by  fire.  The  Apostle 
Peter  says,  "  The  heavens  that  now  are  by  the 
word  of  God  have  been  stored  up  for  fire  (or 
as  it  may  be  rendered,  stored  with  fire),  being 
reserved  against  the  day  of  judgment  when  the 
heavens  shall  pass  away  with  a  great  noise  and 
the  elements  shall  be  dissolved  with  fervent 
heat  and  the  earth  and  the  works  that  are 
therein  shall  be  burned  up."  Science  speaks  of 
the  earth  having  already  passed  through  many 
great  convulsions,  describes  it  now  as  a  ball  of 
molten  fire  crusted  over  with  a  thin  layer  of 
solid  rock,  shows  by  earthquake  and  volcano 
the  possibility,  even  the  probability,  of  a  future 
convulsion — that  it  is  stored  with  fire,  as  the 
Scripture  says.  But  nature,  while  it  teaches  of 
change  of  form,  speaks  also  of  permanence  of 
substance  and  force ;  it  gives  no  intimation  of 
annihilation  but  of  the  possibility,  even  the 
probability,  of  a  new  heavens  and  a  new  earth, 
indescribably  more  rich  and  beautiful  than  our 
present  home,  the  culmination  of  God's  great 


"HE  SHALL  COME  TO  JUDGE"      119 

ideal  of  creation  "  wherein  dwelleth  righteous- 
ness," as  the  Apostle  Peter  describes. 

These  two  associated  events  show  to  us  the 
General  Judgment  in  its  distinctive  character  as 
the  termination  of  what  we  call  the  present  dis- 
pensation, the  present  stage  of  God's  dealings 
with  the  race  of  mankind.  While  there  is  much 
that  is  inconceivable  to  us  about  the  close  of 
this  dispensation  the  fact  itself  seems  indis- 
pensable to  our  thought.  The  everlasting 
continuance  of  the  present  economy  is  not  con- 
ceivable; it  had  a  beginning — just  so  it  must 
have  an  ending.  The  ending  will  be  on  a  scale 
of  grandeur  and  sublimity  in  full  harmony  with 
the  righteousness  of  God  who  gave  His  well 
beloved  Son  to  save  sinners  from  their  sins — 
"  He  will  judge  the  world  in  righteousness,  by 
the  man  he  hath  ordained,  whereof  he  hath 
given  assurance  to  all  men  in  that  he  hath  raised 
him  from  the  dead." 

In  this  sense  it  will  be  the  culmination  and 
vindication  of  the  present  every-day  judgment 
of  the  individual  and  the  race,  and  will  clear 
away  what  may  seem  to  us  now  as  mysterious 
in  the  various  complications  of  our  social  lives, 
as  the  prosperity  of  the  wicked  and  the  adver- 
sity of  the  righteous;  the  inner  life  and  the  out- 
ward circumstance  will  appear  in  the  right  light 
and  in  due  proportion  both  to  the  individual  and 
to  the  race. 


120  THE  APOSTLES'  CKEED 

Another  sublime  purpose  of  the  General 
Judgment  appears  to  be  the  manifestation  to 
the  assembled  universe  of  intelligent  beings  of 
the  righteousness  of  God  in  His  dealings  with 
the  sinful  race  of  man.  Hence  we  are  told  that 
the  Judge  will  be  attended  by  all  the  holy  angels, 
and  that  the  fallen  angels  are  reserved  "  in 
bonds  until  the  day  of  judgment."  Science 
studying  God's  great  book  of  nature  teaches  us 
of  the  probability  of  other  races  of  intelligent 
beings  inhabiting  planets  revolving  about  dis- 
tant suns  in  the  immensity  of  space.  They  may 
know  of  our  race  already  with  their  superior 
powers  and  if  so  they  must  wonder  at  the 
righteousness  of  God  in  sparing  a  race  of 
sinners,  and  at  His  wonderful  love  for  that  race 
in  sending  His  Son  to  this  little  planet  and  in 
His  taking  upon  Himself  our  nature  in  His  great 
condescension  and  sacrifice  to  save  us  from  our 
sins.  So  God's  other  book,  His  supernatural 
revelation  in  the  Bible,  speaks  of  the  General 
Judgment  of  our  race  as  in  the  presence  of  the 
"  angels  of  his  power,"  gazing  in  adoring  won- 
der upon  the  results  of  His  Son's  redeeming 
work  as  pronounced  by  Himself  in  His  judg- 
ment of  our  race. 

All  the  currents  of  human  history  are  setting 
in  to  the  Judgment.  All  generations  of  men 
penitent  and  impenitent  are  moving  on  to  the 
Great  White  Throne.     All  the  ranks  of  angelic 


"HE  SHALL  COME  TO  JUDGE"      121 

beings,  holy  and  rebellious,  are  waiting  for  the 
manifestation  of  the  righteous  judgment  of  God. 

We  must  now  confine  our  attention  to  three 
general  features  of  Christ's  own  description  of 
the  General  Judgment  of  the  race  of  mankind. 

The  first  is  that  Christ  teaches  clearly  that 
He  will  be  the  Judge.  Whatever  perplexities, 
even  doubts,  men  may  entertain  of  Christ's 
divinity  it  is  quite  evident  that  Christ  in  this 
solemn  hour  had  no  doubt  Himself.  In  a  quiet, 
concise,  self-possessed  way  He  describes  His 
judging  all  nations,  the  reasons  of  His  sen- 
tences and  the  execution  of  His  decrees.  The 
resurrection  of  the  dead,  the  assembled  nations, 
the  gathered  angels,  the  throne  of  glory,  while 
the  earth  passes  away  in  smoke  and  flame,  and 
a  new  heavens  and  a  new  earth  evolve  these  all 
center  about  the  person  of  Jesus  Christ  and  pro- 
claim Him  both  Son  of  Man  and  Son  of  God. 

There  is  the  retribution  of  justice  in  His  be- 
ing the  appointed  Judge.  In  two  days  after 
this  description  on  the  Mount  of  Olives  He  was 
judged  by  the  multitude,  by  the  supreme  court 
of  His  own  nation,  and  by  the  Roman  gov- 
ernor, and  He  was  condemned  to  the  cross;  and 
ever  since  He  has  stood  before  the  judgment 
seat  of  human  souls  of  all  who  have  heard  of 
Him  and  has  been  accepted  or  rejected  of  them 
as  the  Saviour  of  sinners. 

There  is  also  the  wisdom  of  justice  in  His  be- 


122  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

ing  the  appointed  Judge.  He  is  the  Son  of 
Man — the  God-Man.  He  knows  the  nature  of 
man  in  His  own  person;  He  has  passed  through 
our  earthly  experiences,  has  borne  our  trials, 
has  faced  our  temptations.  He  knows  us  all 
together.     Our  brother  man  is  our  Judge. 

There  is  also  infinite  love  in  the  justice  of  His 
being  the  appointed  Judge.  No  one  has  ever 
loved  us  as  He  loves  us.  If  He  condemns  us 
nothing  can  be  said  for  us.  Each  one  so  con- 
demned must  as  heartily  condemn  himself, 
for  He  loves  us  more  than  we  can  love  our- 
selves. 

The  condemnation  of  the  lost  will  be  by  the 
Saviour  who  came  to  save  the  lost.  No  one 
ever  did  so  much  for  them;  He  loved  them  so 
He  died  for  them.  We  can  give  our  dearest 
friend  into  His  hand.  He  loves  him  with 
greater  love  than  we  ever  did.  We  can  com- 
mit ourselves  into  His  hand.  No  one  has  ever 
yearned  over  us  to  save  us  as  He  yearns  over  us. 
If  He  pronounces  sentence  against  our  friend, 
if  He  pronounces  sentence  against  us,  it  will  be 
richly  deserved.  If  He  condemns  it  will  be 
evident  to  the  assembled  universe  of  witnessing 
angels,  it  will  be  evident  to  all  one's  friends,  it 
will  be  evident  to  one's  own  self  that  no  other 
sentence  could  possibly  be  given  that  even 
Christ  Himself  could  not  save  him.  Each  one 
will  have  to  confess,  however  hard  to  bear,  that 


"HE  SHALL  COME  TO  JUDGE"      123 

the  sentence  is  the  only  one  infinite  love  could 
pronounce. 

We  now  consider  the  nature  and  grounds  of 
the  General  Judgment  as  described  by  the  Judge 
Himself.  He  will  separate  the  righteous  from 
the  wicked.  The  present  dispensation  is  a  com- 
mingling of  these  two  classes.  We  are  bound 
to  each  other  by  many  close  and  strong  ties. 
At  its  close  there  will  be  a  complete  separation. 
The  Great  Judge  will  separate  them  as  easily 
and  as  accurately  as  a  shepherd  separates  the 
sheep  from  the  goats.  He  will  separate  them  as 
He  discerns  their  character. 

Now  the  Judge  describes  His  test  of  char- 
acter of  each  class  as  He  gives  the  ground  of 
His  decision;  and  we  must  at  once  confess  our 
great  surprise.  The  test  does  not  seem  to  be 
a  moral  one;  there  is  no  recounting  of  splendid 
virtues  or  of  horrid  crimes.  The  test  does  not 
seem  to  be  a  religious  one;  there  is  no  mention 
of  worship  in  private  or  in  public,  nor  of  its 
neglect.  The  test  does  not  seem  to  emphasize 
faith;  there  is  no  mention  of  trusting  in  Christ, 
of  being  forgiven  and  accepted  in  Him,  of  be- 
ing renewed  in  Him,  of  confessing  Him,  nor  of 
rejecting  Christ.  The  test  does  not  seem  to  be 
one  of  obedience  to  law — at  any  rate  nothing  is 
said  of  loving  God  supremely,  as  required  by 
the  first  and  great  commandment,  nor  of  dis- 
liking or  even  hating  God.     But  when  we  con- 


124:  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

sider  more  carefully  the  ground  of  His  decision, 
we  see  it  embraces  all  these,  the  moral,  the  re- 
ligious, the  faith,  the  obedience  to  law.  The 
test  shows  a  character  like  Christ's  in  that  it 
looks  upon  and  treats  all  mankind  as  He  does. 
The  test  shows  the  presence  of  a  brotherly  love 
of  mankind  so  great  and  constant  that  it  acts 
freely,  spontaneously,  instinctively  on  the  whole 
life.  This  is  something  different  from  natural 
benevolence,  an  impulse  to  help  awakened  by 
an  appealing  case.  This  may  coexist  with  an 
utterly  selfish  character.  This  must  be  more 
than  mere  sentimentality  which  may  coexist 
with  hard-hearted  cruelty.  This  must  be  a 
principle  in  control  of  life,  in  control  when  one 
does  not  plan  the  deed,  when  it  comes  out 
spontaneously,  so  that  the  deeds  of  helpfulness 
are  the  natural  outflow  of  the  love — a  surprise 
even  to  the  doer.  The  absence  of  this  spirit 
is  thus  detected  even  when  one  has  natural 
benevolence  and  sentimentality,  so  that  one  may 
truly  say,  "  I  would  have  been  kind  only  I  did 
not  know  you."  He  did  not  have  anything  in 
his  life  which  resembled  Christ's  deep,  steady, 
constant  love  for  all  men. 

The  test  then  is  the  presence  of  Christian  love 
for  Christ,  for  His  followers,  for  all  men  in  such 
a  degree  that  it  controls  the  whole  life  so  that 
even  our  unconscious  acts  are  directed  and 
charged  with  it.     This  we  recognize  at  once 


"  HE  SHALL  COME  TO  JUDGE  "      125 

flows  from  and  so  is  the  evidence  of  our  love  to 
God  in  Christ — a  supreme,  grateful  love;  it 
flows  from  our  faith  in  Christ;  it  proves  that  it 
is  more  than  a  mere  intellectual  acknowledg- 
ment of  Him,  more  than  a  mere  profession;  it 
is  a  living  trust  in  Him,  a  vital  union  with  Him  ; 
it  shows  also  the  spirit  of  true  morality  is  its 
source.  Formal  morality  may  have  one  virtue, 
as  honesty,  accompanied  by  a  dark  vice,  as  im- 
purity; this  seems  a  living  morality,  a  Christian 
love  that  comprehends  all  the  virtues;  it  shows 
also  the  sincerity  and  earnestness  of  all  re- 
ligious observances. 

Christ  as  Judge  makes  the  test  a  striking  one 
by  identifying  Himself  with  the  miserable.  We 
know  how  His  life  when  on  earth  was  a  spon- 
taneous ministering  to  the  wretched.  Many 
expressions  in  the  Gospels  show  there  were 
many  miracles  besides  those  specially  described. 
Before  Him  as  He  passed  through  the  country 
was  the  heavy  cloud  of  misery;  after  Him  the 
bright  sunlight  of  health  and  happiness. 

We  also  see  that  the  progress  of  Christianity 
over  the  world  has  been  attended  by  the  same 
spirit  to  a  large  extent.  The  old  Roman  and 
Greek  civilizations,  as  the  heathen  civilizations 
of  to-day,  largely  neglected  poverty,  sickness 
and  the  prisons,  while  slavery  flourished.  Now 
society  itself  in  Christian  lands  has  abolished 
slavery,  helps  the  poor  and  the  sick  and  the  im- 


126  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

prisoned.  It  is  to-day  going  farther  in  seeking 
to  diminish  sickness  by  fostering  sanitary  con- 
ditions, to  lessen  poverty  by  the  principles  of 
justice  and  even  by  the  spirit  of  love  in  the 
treatment  given  by  both  the  employer  and  em- 
ployee in  business  and  labour,  and  by  conduct- 
ing prisons  in  a  way  to  stimulate  and  help  the 
imprisoned  to  become  good  citizens.  There, 
however,  is  much  still  to  be  done  by  society  for 
all  these  needy  classes,  which  may  still  be  called 
to  some  extent  neglected  classes.  There  should 
certainly  be  a  larger  infusion  of  a  Christian 
spirit  into  the  life  of  society.  This  can  only  be 
of  course  by  a  greater  number  of  Christians  and 
by  a  greater  amount  of  Christian  love.  There 
is  some  reason  to  fear  that  many  professed 
Christians  are  mere  formal  ones,  and  that  even 
genuine  ones  have  not  yet  attained  to  the  larg- 
est possible  degree  of  Christian  love. 

It  behoves  each  one  of  us  to  make  the  matter 
personal.  Not  to  think  mainly  of  the  action  of 
society  in  general,  not  of  individual  acts  of 
what  may  be  called  wayside  charity,  but  to  ex- 
amine our  inner  life.  Is  it  so  controlled  by 
Christian  love  for  all  mankind  that  it  acts  spon- 
taneously, unconsciously,  fully,  as  well  as  by  de- 
sign and  intention,  in  the  family,  in  business 
and  in  society?  One  destitute  of  this  Christian 
love  is  a  selfish  man,  though  living  in  seeming 
morality.     One  possessing  this  Christian  love 


"  HE  SHALL  COME  TO  JUDGE  "      127 

is  acknowledged  as  His  follower  by  Christ,  his 
Judge. 

Let  us  now  consider  the  sentence  of  the 
Judge.  These  are  the  two  strong  and  wonder- 
fully suggestive  words  in  the  concise  sentence — 
Come  and  Depart.  The  personal  character  of 
Christ  the  Judge  is  itself  attractive  to  the  one 
class.  He  draws  them  to  Himself.  Just  as 
truly,  and  it  is  a  terrible  truth,  Christ  is  per- 
sonally repellent  to  the  second  class.  The  self- 
ish soul  would  be  unhappy  in  heaven  where  all 
is  love,  unhappy  in  the  presence  of  Christ  the 
lover  of  mankind,  unhappy  in  the  presence  of 
the  Father,  whose  name  is  love.  Not  in  the 
mere  word  of  his  lips  but  in  the  nature  of  the 
case,  the  character  of  Christ  says,  Depart. 

So  the  meaning  of  the  next  words  are  clear, 
Come  ye  blessed  of  my  Father,  ye  who  have 
his  blessedness,  that  of  loving.  Depart  ye 
cursed,  ye  who  already  in  your  natures  are 
cursed,  who  know  not  pure  love.  The  re- 
mainder of  the  sentence  provides  a  condition 
the  Judge  of  infinite  righteousness  and  mercy 
sees  is  suitable  for  each  class:  Come  ye  blessed, 
inherit  the  kingdom  prepared  for  you  from  the 
foundation  of  the  world.  Heaven  cannot  be 
fully  described  to  us ;  all  description  is  limited  by 
our  language.  We  look  out  upon  the  fair  earth 
and  the  wonderful  universe — there  has  been 
progress   from   the   far-off  beginning,   but   the 


128  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

plan  is  not  yet  complete.  All  so  far  has  been 
but  a  preparation;  the  consummation  is  yet  to 
be — "  the  kingdom  prepared  for  you."  There 
love  shall  flourish  and  even  grow  more  like  the 
eternal  and  infinite  love  in  a  condition  suitable 
to  its  blessedness.  Eternal  life  in  perfect  sur- 
roundings. Depart  from  me,  ye  cursed,  into 
the  eternal  fire  prepared  for  the  devil  and  his 
angels.  Here  too  the  place  of  punishment  can- 
not be  fully  described  to  us,  for  our  thought  is 
limited  to  our  language.  Christ  uses  words 
with  which  we  are  familiar — "  outer  darkness," 
"worm  dying  not,"  and  here  fire;  they  seem 
contradictory,  but  are  really  cumulative,  and  all 
expressive  of  terrible  conditions,  conditions  of 
punishment.  Those  having  the  loveless  char- 
acter go  into  a  condition  suitable  to  them,  for  all 
the  terms  used  are  restrictive  not  only  to  happi- 
ness but  to  growth  of  the  qualities  of  character. 
Depart  from  me — from  love.  Associate  with 
those  confirmed  in  selfishness.  Go  into  a  con- 
dition restrictive  of  further  growth  in  selfish- 
ness. We  sometimes  think  of  eternal  punish- 
ment as  if  it  was  everlasting  woe  inflicted  for 
certain  acts  performed  in  time;  here  it  is  seen 
to  be  a  persistent,  confirmed,  hardened  char- 
acter finding  its  own  place  and  associates.  Our 
ideas  of  time  are  limited.  Let  our  imagination 
take  its  wildest  flight,  we  cannot  reach  the  limit 
of  time.     Still  the  question  arises,  What  is  be- 


"  HE  SHALL  COME  TO  JUDGE  "  129 

yond?  From  the  darkness  beneath  comes  the 
answer:  A  sinner  still,  with  the  selfish,  under 
punishment.  From  the  light  above  comes  the 
answer:  Still  loving,  with  Christ  in  the  kingdom 
of  love. 

On  the  ceiling  of  one  of  the  chapels  in  Rome 
there  is  the  great  painting  by  Michael  Angelo 
of  the  Last  Judgment.  Those  who  have  made 
a  critical  study  of  it  say  that  the  faces  of  the 
blessed  are  expressive  not  of  realization  but  of 
eager  anticipation;  they  are  attracted  by  the 
bright  vision  of  the  kingdom.  So  likewise  the 
faces  of  the  cursed  are  not  filled  with  woe  but 
with  an  awful  dread,  a  shrinking  from  the  im- 
pending punishment.  The  great  artist  has  evi- 
dently caught  the  meaning  of  Christ.  He  did 
not  design  to  give  a  full  description  either  of 
the  blessedness  or  the  misery,  only  of  the  at- 
tractiveness of  the  one  and  the  repulsiveness  of 
the  other — and  this  not  mainly  of  the  condition 
but  of  the  character— the  attractiveness  of  the 
blessed  character,  the  repulsiveness  of  the 
cursed  character. 

Let  us  pause  here  that  Christ's  design  may  be 
fulfilled  in  us. 


X, 


But  when  the  Comforter  is  come  whom  I 
will  send  unto  you  from  the  Father,  even  the 
Spirit  of  truth  which  proceedeth  from  the 
Father,  he  shall  bear  witness  of  me. — 
John  15:  26. 

"  I  BELIEVE  IN  THE  HOLY  GHOST  " 


I 


"^HE  last  article  of  the  Apostles'  Creed 
that  speaks  directly  of  God  says,  I  be- 
lieve in  the  Holy  Ghost. 
The  formula  of  Christian  baptism  and  the 
Apostolic  Benediction  used  generally  at  the 
close  of  our  church  services  bring  what  is  called 
the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  into  constant  re- 
membrance as  a  fundamental  truth  of  the  Chris- 
tian religion.  There  is  increasing  mystery  as 
we  ascend  the  scale  of  being — mystery  in  the 
existence  of  matter,  of  life,  of  man's  life,  phys- 
ical, mental,  spiritual,  and  at  length  the  greatest 
mystery  of  all  in  the  being  of  the  self-existent 
God. 

In  the  unity  of  the  being  of  God  there  is  the 
trinity  of  persons.  In  the  one  God  there  are 
distinctions  we  call  persons.  These  distinctions 
are  not  merely  in  our  idea,  but  in  the  reality  of 
being,  so  that  each  is  a  person,  each  can  say  I 
130 


"I  BELIEVE  m  THE  HOLY  GHOST"    131 

of  himself  and  thou  or  he  of  the  other,  and 
peculiar  properties,  operations  and  offices  may 
be  affirmed  of  each.  Still  God  the  one  person 
is  not  one  and  three  in  the  same  sense;  the 
trinity  is  not  contrary  to  our  reason  but  above 
it,  the  greatest  mystery  of  existence.  We  can- 
not understand  our  own  personality.  Each  one 
of  us  may  say,  I  hunger,  I  think,  I  worship. 
There  are  distinctions  physical,  mental,  spiritual, 
and  each  expresses  itself  in  terms  of  personality, 
but  each  is  so  linked  with  the  others  that  it  has 
no  separate  existence. 

But  it  is  not  only  or  mainly  in  our  own  nature 
that  we  may  see  indications  of  a  Trinity  in  the 
being  of  our  Creator  but  specially  in  the  revela- 
tion He  has  made  to  us  in  the  Scriptures.  At 
the  very  beginning  of  the  hymn  of  creation  in 
the  first  chapter  of  Genesis  it  is  said,  "  The 
Spirit  of  God  moved  upon  the  face  of  the 
waters."  This  awakens  our  thought.  "  Is  the 
Spirit  of  God  "  only  a  mode  of  expressing  the 
power  or  action  of  God,  or  is  there  in  the  being 
of  God  a  distinction  called  the  "  Spirit  of  God  "  ? 
This  last  thought  becomes  progressively  promi- 
nent as  we  follow  the  unfolding  of  the  Scripture 
revelation  until  we  reach  our  text.  Here  Jesus 
Christ  speaks  of  Himself  as  a  person,  of  the 
Father  as  a  person,  and  of  the  Comforter  or 
Holy  Spirit  as  a  person.  Yet  we  find  that  each 
person  is  always  represented  as  having  such 


132  THE  APOSTLES'  CEEED 

relation  to  the  others  that  He  has  no  separate 
existence  by  Himself.  There  is  but  one  God. 
Certain  meanings  of  the  word  person,  as  we 
use  it  of  ourselves,  evidently  do  not  apply  here; 
independent  existence  can  in  no  sense  be  at- 
tributed to  either  Father,  Son  or  Holy  Ghost; 
they  exist  only  in  relation  with  each  other  as 
one  God.  Our  word  person  evidently  does  not 
express  the  whole  truth ;  it  is  our  human  effort 
to  comprehend  the  incomprehensible.  Yet  the 
distinctions  are  real  in  God,  for  each  speaks  of 
Himself  as  a  person,  though  always  as  united  in 
being  with  the  others.  This  truth  has  been 
carefully  considered  in  the  articles  of  the  creed 
concerning  the  Father  and  the  Son,  and  we  are 
now  to  consider  the  office  and  work  of  the  Holy 
Spirit. 

The  revelation  of  God  is  made  to  sinners  and 
has  reference  not  to  the  mystery  of  the  being 
of  God  in  itself  but  only  as  far  as  needed  to 
make  us  understand  the  great  salvation  worked 
for  us  and  offered  to  us.  The  Father  creates, 
maintains  and  rules.  He  sent  the  Son,  and 
through  Him  forgives  and  restores  us  to  His 
favour.  The  Son  came  forth  from  the  Father, 
assumed  our  nature,  represents  us,  died  for  us 
and  so  redeemed  us  to  Himself.  Now  we  con- 
sider the  Holy  Spirit  in  His  loving  work  of  ap- 
plying the  blood-bought  salvation  to  us. 

The  deep  reality  in  the  being  of  God  is  the 


"  I  BELIEVE  IN  THE  HOLY  GHOST  M    133 

basis  of  this  threefold  revelation  of  God.  God 
the  Father  describes  the  general  relation  of  the 
Creator  and  Ruler  of  the  universe  to  us,  the 
children  of  men.  God  the  Son  describes  the 
mission  and  work  of  Christ  as  the  Saviour  of 
sinners.  God  the  Holy  Spirit  describes  the  ex- 
ecution of  the  plan  of  salvation  to  the  race  of 
mankind. 

Christ  the  incarnate  Son  of  God  wrought  out 
His  mission  in  a  few  short  years  in  a  far-off  age 
and  land;  this  supreme  revelation  of  God  was 
localized  in  the  necessities  of  the  case.  Now 
the  Holy  Spirit  makes  Christ,  His  life,  His 
teaching,  His  redeeming  work  universal  in  all 
lands  and  ages :  to  the  world  awakening  belief, 
and  to  believers  revealing  Christ  in  His  fullness 
of  saving  power. 

Our  Saviour,  in  His  farewell  address  to  His 
disciples  the  night  before  His  death  upon  the 
cross,  follows  the  text  with  what  is  called  the 
Holy  Ghost  chapter,  the  sixteenth  chapter  of 
the  Gospel  of  John.  In  the  early  verses  of  the 
chapter,  especially  in  the  seventh  verse,  He 
teaches  that  the  coming  of  the  Holy  Spirit  is 
dependent  upon  His  own  death  and  resurrec- 
tion. In  the  eighth,  ninth,  tenth  and  eleventh 
verses  He  describes  the  mission  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  to  the  world.  In  the  fifteenth  He  de- 
scribes the  mission  of  the  Holy  Spirit  to  be- 
lievers. 


134  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

When  we  ask,  as  we  must,  how  is  Christ  made 
universal  to  all  lands  and  all  ages,  how  does  the 
Holy  Spirit  work  this  great  result,  we  can  at 
once  see  that  it  is  in  at  least  three  ways.  First, 
by  the  record  of  Christ's  work  as  handed  down 
to  us  in  the  Scriptures.  The  Apostle  Peter 
says  of  the  Scriptures,  "  Men  spake  from  God 
being  moved  by  the  Holy  Spirit."  This  gives 
us  the  whole  Scriptures,  and  especially  the 
Gospels.  Secondly,  by  the  personal  influence 
of  believers.  In  Scripture  times  and  ever  since 
the  knowledge  of  Christ  has  spread  among  men 
from  those  who  have  trusted  Him  as  their 
Saviour  and  lived  His  life.  Thirdly,  by  the 
loving  influences  of  the  Holy  Spirit  Himself 
through  the  Scriptures  and  through  the  testi- 
mony of  believers  to  persuade  men  to  believe 
in  Christ. 

We  now  follow  the  Saviour's  description  of 
the  mission  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  First  to  the 
world.  "  He  will  convict  the  world  of  sin,  of 
righteousness  and  of  judgment."  In  the  first 
and  in  each  of  the  following  cases  the  Holy 
Spirit  uses  Christ  Himself  in  His  life  here  on  the 
earth,  and  especially  in  His  death,  to  accom- 
plish His  gracious  purpose. 

First,  He  convicts  the  world  of  sin  because 
they  believe  not  on  Christ.  The  Holy  Spirit 
reveals  Christ  to  the  world  in  all  the  perfection 
of  His  being — the  man  who  did  the  will  of  God, 


« I  BELIEVE  IN  THE  HOLY  GHOST  "    135 

revealed  the  nature  of  God.  The  man  "  who 
went  about  doing  good,"  the  lover  of  His  fellow 
man.  The  man  who  had  not  a  thought  of  self- 
ishness, who  was  wholly  devoted  to  God  and 
man.  Not  to  recognize  Him  in  His  genuine 
goodness  reveals  to  the  thoughtful  man  that  his 
own  moral  nature  is  blind.  Natural  blindness 
may  be  tested  thus;  he  cannot  see  the  glimmer 
of  a  candle,  the  glare  of  an  arc  light;  he  cannot 
even  see  the  sun — surely  he  is  blind.  Then 
beside  as  a  man  recognizes,  and  to  the  extent  he 
recognizes  the  goodness  of  Christ,  he  sees  his 
own  glaring  defects.  The  man  relying  upon 
his  morality,  even  proud  of  it,  must  as  he  looks 
upon  Christ  say,  I  do  not  love  God  as  Christ 
did.  I  do  not  love  my  fellow  man  as  Christ 
did.  And  now  the  Holy  Spirit  shows  us  this 
perfect  man  upon  the  cross,  cast  out  by  man  as 
unworthy  to  live.  Who  crucified  Him?  Our 
brothers,  our  fellow  men.  There  is  something 
in  man  that  is  repelled  by  pure  goodness,  is 
awakened  to  enmity  by  the  rebuke  of  goodness. 
That  goodness  I  do  not  recognize  shows  me 
my  blindness;  that  goodness  I  do  recognize 
shows  me  my  defects;  that  goodness  that 
arouses  my  enmity  shows  me  my  hardness. 
The  Holy  Spirit  convicts  of  sin,  the  sin  of  not 
believing  on  Christ,  not  recognizing  Christ,  not 
trusting  Christ,  not  adoring  Christ. 

In  the  next  step  of  His  mission  Christ  says, 


136  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

"  The  Holy  Spirit  will  convince  the  world  of 
righteousness  because  I  go  to  the  Father  and 
ye  behold  me  no  more."  The  Holy  Spirit  in 
showing  the  world  its  sin  reveals  its  ruin,  its 
helplessness;  now  He  shows  the  world  the 
righteousness  of  Christ  and  so  reveals  its  refuge, 
its  hope.  Death  often  clarifies  our  view  of  a 
virtuous  life — lifts  the  whole  life  to  our  view  in 
its  strength  and  beauty.  The  Israelites  mur- 
mured against  Moses  while  he  lived  and  revered 
him  after  his  death.  So  Christ  directs  our  view 
to  His  completed  life.  As  we  look  we  are  com- 
pelled to  say,  His  life  is  perfect;  He  loves  God 
so  He  dies  in  doing  His  will;  He  loves  man  so 
He  dies  for  him.  Such  a  life  deserves  a  trans- 
lation to  heaven,  an  ascension  to  the  Father. 
But  far  more  is  taught  by  the  Holy  Spirit. 
Christ  claimed  to  be  the  Son  of  God  and  the 
Son  of  Man,  to  be  the  Saviour  of  sinners,  to  give 
His  life  a  ransom,  to  shed  His  blood  as  a  sacri- 
fice for  sin,  to  die  that  man  might  live.  It  is  an 
astounding  claim  by  this  righteous  man.  Is  it 
false?  Then  surely  God  will  pronounce  it  false 
by  His  unbroken  grave.  Is  it  true?  Yes,  be- 
yond a  doubt,  for  God  raises  Him  from  the 
dead,  and  He  ascends  to  the  Father.  The 
righteousness  is  accepted,  the  ransom  of  the 
sinner  is  paid,  the  sacrifice  for  sin  is  sufficient. 
Sinners  would  be  banished  by  the  righteousness 
of  Christ  were  it  not  that  He  was  their  repre- 


"  I  BELIEVE  IN  THE  HOLY  GHOST  "    137 

sentative — the  Son  of  God  of  infinite  dignity 
and  worth,  the  Son  of  Man  our  brother.  He 
lived  for  man.  He  died  for  man.  His  life,  His 
death  as  our  representative  has  been  accepted 
by  the  Father,  and  now  our  representative  is 
at  the  right  hand  of  the  throne  of  God. 

What  hinders  us  now  from  sharing  in  this 
blood-bought,  glorious  salvation  from  sin? 
There  is  but  one  thing,  the  hold  the  prince  of 
this  world  has  upon  us,  the  power  of  sin  over 
us. 

The  third  feature  of  the  mission  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  Christ  says,  is  that  He  will  convince  the 
world  of  judgment  because  the  prince  of  this 
world  hath  been  judged.  Both  God  and  man 
have  judged  him.  Deep  in  human  nature  is  the 
power  of  judging,  of  approving  or  condemning 
principles  leading  to  courses  of  action. 

Principles  do  not  have  a  separate  existence  in 
themselves;  they  are  abstractions  of  our 
thought;  they  exist  only  in  persons.  We  may 
in  our  thought  sum  up  such  worldly  principles 
as  embodied  in  a  person,  and  we  may  call  him 
the  prince  of  this  world,  and  then  we  may  judge 
him.  It  is  of  this  Christ  speaks.  He  says,  The 
Holy  Spirit  will  arouse  by  my  death  this  judg- 
ment power  in  human  nature  to  judge  those 
principles  and  forces  which  brought  me  to  the 
cross. 

When  we  reflect  we  see  that  the  whole  world 


138  THE  APOSTLES'  CKEED 

has  pronounced  and  is  constantly  pronouncing 
judgment  upon  the  main  actors  in  the  crucifixion 
of  Christ,  that  is  upon  the  principles  embodied 
in  them;  upon  these  actors  under  the  willing 
sway  of  the  prince  of  this  world;  and  the  sen- 
tence is  one  of  condemnation. 

What  is  the  world's  judgment  of  Judas;  of 
the  unscrupulous,  selfish  love  of  money  em- 
bodied in  him  ?  What  is  the  world's  judgment 
of  Caiaphas;  of  the  proud  intolerance  of  re- 
ligious opinion  and  power  embodied  in  him? 
What  is  the  world's  judgment  of  Pilate;  of  the 
absorbing  ambition  for  political  place  and 
power  embodied  in  him?  What  is  the  world's 
judgment  upon  the  multitude:  of  the  fickle 
nature  in  the  masses,  of  the  love  of  applause, 
of  fame,  embodied  in  them?  What  is  the 
world's  judgment  upon  the  recklessly  wicked, 
upon  the  Roman  soldiers  and  the  impenitent 
thief;  of  the  cruelty,  the  gambling,  the  reviling 
embodied  in  them?  What  is  the  world's  judg- 
ment of  the  disciples  forsaking  Christ  in  the 
hour  of  His  distress;  of  the  weak  loyalty  to  a 
person  and  a  cause  which  fails  when  hardship 
and  danger  threaten?  The  Holy  Spirit  has  so 
awakened  the  judgment  power  of  our  nature 
that  we  condemn  the  prince  of  this  world.  Why 
then  should  we  not  rebel  against  him?  Why 
not  throw  off  his  yoke?  Why  should  each  one 
be  held  any  longer  by  the  principle  seen  and 


"I  BELIEVE  IN  THE  HOLY  GHOST"    139 

instinctively  condemned  as  it  takes  its  sinful 
part  in  crucifying  Christ?  The  love  of  money 
is  forever  condemned  in  Judas.  Shall  I  let  it 
make  a  Judas  of  me?  The  pride  of  opinion  is 
forever  condemned  in  Caiaphas.  Political  am- 
bition is  hideous  in  Pilate.  Popular  applause  is 
not  worth  living  for  as  seen  in  the  multitude. 
Presumptuous  wickedness  is  repellent  at  the 
cross.  Half-hearted  loyalty  is  unworthy  the 
soul:  all  these  principles  of  action  cry  aloud  for 
condemnation. 

These  principles  of  action  which  have  such  a 
large  influence,  when  we  see  them  at  the  cross 
of  Christ,  are  utterly  condemned,  the  world  it- 
self being  aroused  to  judge  them.  The  only 
wise  thing  for  us  to  do  is  to  repudiate  them,  to 
cast  off  their  power,  and  turn  to  Christ  our 
Saviour. 

With  these  few  strong  words  the  Saviour 
describes  the  complete  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
in  the  world,  revealing  through  the  life  and 
death  of  Christ  man's  sin,  the  Saviour's  power 
to  save,  and  showing  us  how  unworthy  of  us 
are  the  worldly  principles  which  would  keep  us 
from  accepting  Christ  as  our  Saviour.  In  His 
last  address  to  the  people  in  the  Temple  as  re- 
corded in  the  twelfth  chapter  of  John  the 
Saviour  states  this  truth  with  its  companion 
truth.  "  Now  is  the  judgment  of  this  world, 
now  shall  the  prince  of  this  world  be  cast  out. 


140  THE  APOSTLES'  CllEEB 

And  I  if  I  be  lifted  up  from  the  earth  will  draw 
all  men  to  myself."  The  prince  of  this  world 
is  unworthy  of  our  allegiance,  is  cast  out. 
Christ  crucified  is  universally  attractive.  Re- 
sisting the  power  of  the  world  let  us  yield  to  the 
attractive  power  of  Christ.  Now  when  one 
says,  I  believe  in  the  Holy  Ghost,  he  not  only 
believes  this  is  the  mission  of  the  Holy  Ghost 
in  the  world  as  Christ  teaches,  but  he  trusts  in 
the  Holy  Ghost  to  thus  work  in  him  so  he  sees 
his  sin,  sees  his  Saviour,  and  sees  his  liberty 
from  the  prince  of  this  world,  who  has  deceived 
and  enslaved  him. 

We  are  not  to  think  of  the  Holy  Spirit  as  an 
arbitrary  and  capricious  sovereign  working  only 
where  He  will  and  as  He  will,  so  we  cannot  fore- 
see and  rely  upon  His  work,  but  must  await  His 
irresistible,  mysterious  power  for  our  salvation. 

God  never  acts  capriciously  either  in  nature 
or  in  grace.  He  has  made  man  a  free  moral 
agent  and  always  treats  him  as  such.  The  Holy 
Spirit  does  not  coerce  a  man  to  believe — such 
belief  would  not  in  any  sense  be  man's  at  all. 
The  Saviour  Himself  tells  us  the  character  and 
mission  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  We  know  we  can 
rely  upon  His  character,  we  can  depend  upon 
His  mission,  accept  it  and  act  with  Him. 

We  have  already  seen  that  the  Holy  Spirit 
makes  Christ,  who  was  localized  upon  the  earth 
centuries  ago,  present  now  in  all  ages  and  in 


"I  BELIEVE  IN  THE  HOLY  GHOST"    141 

all  lands.  The  Holy  Spirit  now  reveals  Christ 
and  carries  on  His  work  in  the  whole  world  as 
present  in  His  spirit.  When  Christ  was  upon 
earth  He  taught  men,  He  invited  men,  He  urged 
men  to  believe  in  Him  but  He  never  coerced 
men.  So  now  the  Holy  Spirit  appeals  to  the 
God-given  nature  of  man,  to  his  free  will;  He 
instructs  of  his  sin,  of  his  Saviour,  and  of  the 
condemnation  of  the  prince  of  this  world  who 
enslaves  man,  and  so  He  influences  and  leads 
man.  If  now  we  do  not  rebel  against  the  prince 
of  this  world  we  choose  to  remain  his  slaves; 
the  full  responsibility  is  ours — it  does  not  belong 
in  any  sense  to  the  Holy  Spirit.  If  we  rebel 
against  the  power  of  sin  in  us  we  follow  the  in- 
fluence of  the  Holy  Spirit  and  may  rely  upon 
His  help  for  success  as  He  helps  all  believers — 
which  is  the  second  part  of  His  mission. 

Belief,  as  we  saw  at  the  beginning  of  the 
Apostles'  Creed,  is  both  intellectual  belief  and 
heart  trust;  these  two  go  together  in  our  belief 
in  all  the  persons  of  the  one  Godhead.  When 
we  believe  in  God  the  Father  Almighty,  maker 
of  heaven  and  earth,  we  trust  Him  as  our 
Father.  When  we  believe  in  Christ  we  trust 
Him  as  our  Saviour.  So  when  we  believe  in 
the  Holy  Spirit  we  not  only  have  an  intellectual 
belief  in  His  character  and  mission  in  the  world, 
but  we  trust  Him,  as  He  brings  us  to  Christ  and 
renews  us  in  His  likeness.     We  through  His  in- 


142  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

fluence  on  us  cast  off  the  sway  of  the  prince  of 
this  world  and  come  under  the  sway  of  the 
Prince  of  Righteousness.  May  we  never  reject 
the  mission  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  never  grieve 
Him  ;  rather  may  we  heartily  accept  His  mission 
in  the  world  and  joyfully  accept  His  mission  to 
believers.  Our  Saviour  describes  the  mission 
of  the  Holy  Spirit  to  believers  in  the  fifteenth 
verse  of  this  sixteenth  chapter  of  the  Gospel  by 
John.  "  All  things  the  Father  hath  are  mine, 
the  Holy  Spirit  shall  take  of  mine  and  shall  de- 
clare it  unto  you."  The  full  revelation  of  the 
power  and  grace  of  God  in  the  Saviour  He  will 
declare  unto  you. 

The  remaining  articles  of  the  Apostles'  Creed 
will  in  some  measure  set  forth  the  enlarging 
experience  of  the  believer  of  the  full  salvation 
of  Christ  as  wrought  in  him  through  the  grow- 
ing confidence,  loving  trust  and  steady  loyalty 
of  his  belief  in  the  Holy  Ghost. 

In  recent  years  our  knowledge  of  the  heavens 
has  been  greatly  enlarged  by  stellar  photog- 
raphy. A  dry  process  photographer's  plate  is 
held  facing  a  certain  part  of  the  heavens  steadily 
for  several  hours.  Of  course  this  can  only  be 
done  by  freeing  the  plate  entirely  from  the 
movement  of  the  revolving  earth  and  it  must 
be  done  only  when  the  air  is  free  from  dust  and 
clouds.  Then  a  remarkable  picture  of  them- 
selves is  wrought  on  the  plate  by  the  myriad 


"  I  BELIEVE  IN  THE  HOLY  GHOST  "    143 

flashing  suns  beyond  the  power  of  the  largest 
telescope  to  discover.  All  the  stars  we  knew 
before  are  clearly  upon  the  plate  and  multitudes 
of  others  we  had  never  seen.  So  the  Holy 
Spirit  leads  us  and  helps  us  to  look  steadily  to 
Christ,  frees  us  from  the  sway  of  the  prince  of 
this  world — of  the  world  movement  and  the 
world  mists  and  clouds.  And  as  we  so  look  to 
Christ  our  souls  grow  in  His  likeness:  the 
virtues  and  graces  in  Him  are  revealed  to  us 
and  impressed  upon  us  by  the  Holy  Spirit. 


XL 

Now  ye  are  the  body  of  Christ  and  sever- 
ally members  thereof. — i  Cor.  12:27. 

"  THE  HOLY  CATHOLIC  CHURCH  " 

THE  Apostle  is  speaking  in  this  chapter 
of  the  Church.  While  writing  to  a 
particular  church  he  describes  the 
whole  Church  in  all  ages  and  lands — calls  it  the 
body  of  Christ.  The  articles  of  the  Apostles' 
Creed  we  have  thus  far  considered  have  directed 
our  faith  to  God  as  He  reveals  Himself  for  our 
salvation.  Now  this  and  the  following  articles 
tell  of  our  faith  as  seen  in  our  experience  of  this 
salvation.  The  first  says  I  believe  in  the  Holy 
Catholic  Church. 

Our  word  church  is  a  translation  of  the 
Greek  word  used  in  the  New  Testament  mean- 
ing an  assembly  or  congregation  of  people  called 
together  by  a  herald  or  proclamation.  The 
society  called  together  by  Jesus  Christ  of  all 
those  who  believe  in  Him  is  called  the  Christian 
Church.  Christ  as  Head  of  the  Church,  the 
source  of  all  authority  in  it,  instituted  two  sacra- 
ments setting  it  apart  and  distinguishing  it  from 

144 


"THE  HOLY  CATHOLIC  CHUECH"    145 

the  general  societies  of  the  world:  Baptism, 
the  rite  of  initiation,  and  the  Lord's  Supper,  the 
right  of  maintenance.  The  word  Catholic 
comes  from  two  Greek  words  meaning  the  en- 
tire, the  whole;  the  Catholic  Church  therefore 
means  the  whole  Christian  Church.  This 
Church  began  its  existence  in  Judea  many  cen- 
turies ago,  and  as  it  has  lived  through  the  ages 
and  spread  into  many  races  and  lands  it  has 
developed  many  varieties  in  government,  in 
worship,  in  creed  and  in  mode  of  living;  but 
these  have  all  been  the  effort  of  the  human 
mind  in  varied  races  and  conditions  to  learn 
more  fully  of  the  great  Head  of  the  Church  and 
of  the  way  to  serve  and  honour  Him.  Mis- 
takes and  errors  may  have  been  made  and  may 
now  be  cherished,  but  the  Catholic  Church  cen- 
ters its  faith  in  Jesus  Christ,  its  Lord  and 
Saviour.  The  main  divisions  existing  to-day, 
each  uses  the  word  Catholic.  The  Roman 
Catholic  means  the  whole  Roman  Church.  The 
Greek  Catholic  means  the  whole  Greek  Church. 
The  Protestant  Catholic  means  the  whole 
Protestant  Church.  Each  of  these  has  divisions 
in  itself,  particularly;  the  Protestant  has  a  mul- 
titude of  denominations,  each  having  some  dis- 
tinction in  government,  worship,  creed  or  mode 
of  life.  But  when  we  use  the  words  of  the 
Apostles'  Creed  the  Catholic  Church  means  the 
whole  Church,  including  the  Roman,  the  Greek, 


146  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

and  the  Protestant,  the  universal  Church  in  all 
lands  and  ages. 

The  word  holy  means  set  apart  to  the  service 
of  God.  Holiness  is  the  reverse  of  moral  im- 
purity; it  is  the  active  principle  of  purity  cast- 
ing off  all  impurity;  it  is  positive  righteousness. 
This  is  absolute  in  God.  It  can  only  be  relative 
in  man,  and  of  course  in  a  society  of  men,  though 
engaged  in  the  service  of  God.  The  avowed 
purpose  and  effort  of  this  society  flow  from  faith 
in  Christ,  and  recognize  that  only  to  the  extent 
of  its  being  holy  can  it  serve  and  honour  the 
Holy  God.  Here,  as  always  in  the  creed,  belief 
is  not  only  intellectual  acceptance  but  heart 
trust.  I  believe  in  the  Holy  Catholic  Church 
means  not  only  I  believe  in  its  existence,  but  I 
have  confidence  in  its  principles  and  purposes 
to  such  an  extent  that  I  am  identified  with  it. 
Such  an  one  may  believe  more  heartily  in  one 
branch  of  the  Church  than  in  another,  but  he 
recognizes  it  as  a  branch,  and  therefore  believes 
in  the  whole,  the  Holy  Catholic  Church. 

There  is  then  a  society  in  the  world  which  is 
distinct  from  the  world  in  that  it  recognizes 
Christ  as  its  head ;  it  agrees  in  its  faith  in  Him, 
it  acknowledges  His  authority  and  tries  to  live 
His  life;  it  has  been  gathered  by  His  word  and 
spirit,  and  it  proclaims  that  word  and  conveys 
that  spirit  to  the  world. 

In  the  last  article  of  the  creed  we  saw  the 


"THE  HOLY  CATHOLIC  CHURCH"    147 

mission  of  the  Holy  Spirit  was  to  convince  the 
world  of  its  need  of  a  Saviour  and  to  lead  to 
trust  in  that  Saviour.  Now  we  see  that  the 
Church  is  formed  of  those  who  thus  trust  in 
Christ  and  that  its  work  is  to  proclaim  Him  to 
the  world  through  the  Holy  Spirit. 

Let  us  take  in  the  sublime  thought.  The 
great  universal  Church  of  Christ  is  called  from 
the  world,  agrees  in  its  true  faith  and  is  en- 
dowed by  the  Holy  Spirit  and  commissioned 
by  Christ  to  live  His  life  and  carry  on  His  work 
in  the  world.  It  represents  Him  in  all  lands 
and  in  all  ages.  While  divinely  called  and  com- 
missioned it  is  made  up  of  human  members  with 
many  virtues  and  many  frailties.  Some  mem- 
bers are  strong  and  true,  some  are  weak  and 
some  are  false.  We  are  to  be  always  liberal  in 
our  judgment  of  others  and  strict  in  our  judg- 
ment of  ourselves,  and  we  are  to  judge  of  any 
society  by  its  consistent  members.  So  judg- 
ing of  the  Holy  Catholic  Church  we  should  be 
filled  with  admiration  for  it  and  strongly  drawn 
to  it — should  believe  in  it  heartily. 

Three  things  about  it  may  be  rapidly  men- 
tioned. First,  it  is  an  ancient  organization. 
Before  the  time  of  Christ  men  had  been  gath- 
ered by  the  supernatural  revelation  of  God  pre- 
paring for  Christ,  the  saints  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, the  heroes  and  poets  and  orators  of 
Israel — a  noble  line.     Since  the  time  of  Christ 


148  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

the  Church  has  gathered  its  members  and  car- 
ried on  its  life  and  work.  Races,  nations, 
empires,  civilizations,  Egyptian,  Babylonian, 
Grecian,  Roman  have  risen,  flourished  and 
passed  away.  They  are  remembered  only  by 
their  monuments.  The  Church  needs  no  monu- 
ment. It  still  lives.  It  is  not  decrepit  with  age. 
It  is  in  the  vigour  of  youthful  life  and  divine 
energy. 

The  second  thing  to  be  noticed  is  its  universal 
character — it  is  fitted  for  humanity.  It  is  not 
confined  to  any  favoured  nation,  or  race,  or 
class  of  men.  None  are  too  noble  to  be  called, 
and  none  are  too  lowly,  none  too  cultured  and 
none  too  ignorant,  none  too  rich  and  none  too 
poor,  none  too  good  and  none  too  bad.  Wher- 
ever human  lives  are  found  there  is  need  for 
the  Church  and  the  Church  goes  there  as  com- 
missioned by  Christ  and  filled  with  the  Holy 
Spirit  to  show  the  need  and  to  urge  all  to  trust 
the  Saviour.  The  Church  gives  its  invitation 
and  gathers  its  members  to  its  equal  rights  and 
privileges  wherever  man  is  found,  whether  in 
the  heart  of  Africa  or  in  the  highest  college 
town  of  our  favoured  land,  in  the  deepest  slums 
of  a  city  or  in  its  finest  palaces :  it  seeks  and  wel- 
comes humanity  wherever  found. 

The  third  thing  to  be  noticed  is,  it  is  a 
beneficent  organization.  Christ  said,  "  Ye  are 
the  salt  of  the  earth,"  and  salt  is  gathered  only 


«THE  HOLY  CATHOLIC  CHUKCH"    149 

to  be  used  when  needed  to  preserve  and  purify. 
Christ  said,  "  Ye  are  the  light  of  the  world," 
and  light  is  not  to  be  hidden  but  to  shine  to 
drive  away  darkness.  So  the  Church  ever  takes 
the  lead  in  the  progress  of  the  race  in  morals 
and  true  welfare;  its  influence  is  a  blessed  one — 
a  beneficent  one  in  all  ages  and  lands.  When 
the  dark  ages  settled  upon  Europe  caused  by 
the  barbarians,  the  Goths  and  Vandals  over- 
whelming the  Roman  power  and  civilization, 
the  Church  preserved  much  of  the  literature  and 
culture  of  ancient  Greece  and  Rome  and  kindled 
the  new  light  of  the  teachings  and  life  of  its 
Saviour,  and  this  has  grown  and  spread  to  the 
civilization  of  to-day.  In  that  cruel  dark  age 
of  feuds  and  rapine  mercy  found  its  refuge  in 
the  Church.  Alas  also  the  world  spirit  of 
cruelty  entered  its  bosom.  The  deficiencies  of 
the  Church  are  recognized  as  unworthy  of  her, 
as  coming  not  from  her  Lord,  but  from  the 
world.  The  persecutions  in  the  Church  were 
largely  this  false  spirit  trying  to  crush  the  true 
Church  within  its  own  organization;  the  perse- 
cuting spirit  was  the  world  spirit ;  the  persecuted 
spirit  was  the  true  Church  trying  to  grow  in 
the  knowledge  and  spirit  of  Christ. 

The  large  tolerance  of  opinion  and  Christian 
charity  prevailing  to-day  come  from  the  true 
Church  in  its  growth  in  the  knowledge  and 
spirit  of  its  Lord  and  Head.     We  cannot  over- 


150  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

estimate  the  beneficent  effects  of  the  teaching 
and  life  of  the  Church  upon  the  race  of  man 
in  all  lands  and  ages.  It  has  ever  taught  the 
loftiest  truths — holding  God  high  in  the  thought 
of  man  as  Creator,  righteous  Ruler  and  gracious 
Father;  holding  man  high  in  his  own  thought  as 
more  than  an  animal,  as  a  spiritual  being  created 
in  the  likeness  of  God,  and  though  fallen  into  sin 
still  capable  of  being  restored  in  that  likeness, 
as  having  the  lofty  call  to  learn  of  God,  to  grow 
in  His  knowledge,  His  grace,  His  likeness  and 
His  service.  So  the  Church  has  ever  gathered 
in  its  membership  the  penitent  and  the  renewed 
and  taught  them  of  Christ,  and  incited  them 
to  live  the  Christ  life  in  the  world.  Wherever 
the  Church  life  has  prevailed  many  beneficent 
results  have  followed.  Woman  has  been 
lifted  to  the  position  of  honour  rightfully  be- 
longing to  her.  Marriage  has  been  sanctified, 
family  life  has  been  ennobled,  children  have  re- 
ceived much  elevating  attention,  shackles  have 
fallen  from  the  slave,  the  poor  have  received 
sympathy  and  much  judicious  help  in  self-re- 
specting support  and  larger  justice  and  the  sick 
and  suffering  have  received  its  ministry  in 
lightened  groans,  in  restored  health  and  in  more 
sanitary  conditions  of  living. 

The  Church  has  had  its  deficiencies,  its  periods 
of  depression;  it  could  not  have  been  otherwise, 
as  it  is  a  human  organization;  but  its  faith  has 


"THE  HOLY  CATHOLIC  CHURCH"     151 

been  in  the  Saviour  and  its  general  aim  to  pro- 
claim Him  to  the  world  by  its  word  and  its 
life — and  its  influence,  greater  at  times  than  at 
others,  has  been  generally  a  beneficent  one. 

Let  us  in  our  favoured  land  and  age  give  due 
credit  to  the  main  agency  of  our  civilization ; 
let  us  think  and  speak  honourably  and  lovingly 
of  the  "  mother  who  has  borne  and  trained  us." 
In  the  Church  also  we  find  incentive,  culture 
and  opportunity  to  render  the  best  service  to 
our  fellow  men.  We  are  not  to  be  contented 
with  an  unconscious  beneficence,  however  large, 
but  are  called  by  Christ  the  Head  to  devise  and 
foster  a  larger  social  service  of  the  Church,  the 
intentional  influence  and  effort  it  may  and 
should  put  forth  to  benefit  all  conditions  of  men 
in  all  directions. 

On  the  other  hand  we  hear  the  criticism  that 
the  Church  has  been  left  behind  by  the  great 
attainments  and  achievements  of  this  wonder- 
ful age  in  which  we  live.  It  is  claimed  and  it  is 
probably  largely  true  that  during  the  past  cen- 
tury man  has  acquired  more  knowledge  of 
nature  and  more  control  of  its  forces  and  more 
resulting  power  and  wealth  than  in  all  the  for- 
mer centuries.  It  is  an  age  of  the  sciences — 
and  of  applied  science — science  of  the  heavens 
and  the  earth — man  grasping  the  power  of 
steam,  of  electricity,  of  explosives,  boring 
through   mountains,   sailing   over   seas,    riding 


152  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

swiftly  on  land,  and  flying  in  the  heavens,  send- 
ing his  messages  over  the  land,  under  the  sea, 
through  the  air.  Wonderful  attainments  and 
achievements,  vast  knowledge  and  culture,  vast 
power  and  wealth. 

Much  of  this  advance  may  be  attributed  to 
the  human  mind  becoming  freed  from  the  bond- 
age of  superstition;  and  this  has  been  largely 
due  to  the  Church  holding  before  man  the  lofty 
thought  of  the  one  God,  maker  of  heaven  and 
earth,  our  Father,  and  the  lofty  thought  of  man 
as  the  child  of  God,  and  so  inciting  him  to  read 
the  book  of  nature — to  discover  its  meaning  and 
use  its  forces. 

Still  our  civilization,  in  itself  alone  with  all  its 
attainments,  has  its  clear  limitations  and  great 
dangers.  The  present  terrible  war  among  the 
Christian  nations  in  Europe  shows  that  these 
great  forces  of  civilization  have  not  eradicated 
the  savage  nature  of  man  but  have  become  the 
fearful  means  by  which  it  destroys  life  and 
property;  alas  also  it  shows  that  the  Christian 
Church  has  not  insisted  enough  in  its  teaching 
and  life  upon  love  as  the  law  of  God,  the  law  of 
"  righteousness,  peace  and  joy  in  the  Holy 
Ghost";  it  has  not  at  any  rate  taught  and  in- 
fluenced the  nations  it  has  made  to  some  extent 
Christian,  to  have  the  Christian  spirit  in  full 
control,  has  not  taught  each  nation  to  love  its 
neighbour  as  itself. 


"THE  HOLY  CATHOLIC  CHURCH"    153 

While  Christianity  has  not  eradicated  the 
fighting  propensity  of  mankind  it  has,  we  feel, 
in  the  case  of  our  nation  and  our  allies  given  it 
a  noble  purpose.  Fighting  in  itself  becomes 
arrogant,  strives  for  self  and  power,  for  the 
victory  of  might,  for  the  having  its  own  way 
even  by  the  oppression  of  the  defeated.  But 
there  may  be  fighting  with  a  noble  aim,  to  de- 
fend the  weak,  to  relieve  the  oppressed,  to  se- 
cure the  right  against  the  assaults  of  might. 
Thus  Christianity  in  the  middle  ages  turned  the 
warrior  into  a  knight.  Thus  in  our  day  the 
spirit  of  the  individual  knight  has  taken  posses- 
sion of  nations.  Ours  is  the  most  advanced  age 
of  chivalry,  as  seen  in  the  act  of  our  nation. 
She  has  entered  the  war  not  for  selfish  ag- 
grandizement or  material  gain,  but  to  defend 
her  weak  citizens  from  the  assault  of  cruel  power 
upon  the  seas,  to  aid  France  in  her  distress  as 
she  aided  us  in  our  struggle  for  freedom,  to  save 
Belgium  and  the  weak  nations  from  being  ab- 
sorbed in  an  arrogant  world  empire,  to  make 
the  world  safe  for  democracy,  for  the  rights  of 
the  people  of  all  the  earth  to  choose  their  own 
mode  of  government,  to  destroy  the  power  of 
militarism  that  humanity  may  have  liberty.  To 
secure  these  noble  purposes  our  nation,  as  of 
old  the  individual  knight,  is  distinguished  for 
honour,  courtesy,  bravery,  magnanimity;  she 
pours  out  her  blood  and  her  treasure  for  the 


154  THE  APOSTLES'  CKEED 

rescue  of  the  oppressed,  for  the  welfare  of  man- 
kind. In  all  this  our  nation,  under  the  influence 
of  the  Church,  has  caught  the  spirit  of  our 
religion. 

Now  as  we  look  more  carefully  at  the  social 
condition  of  our  country  in  this  time  of  great 
material  prosperity  it  becomes  clear  that  the 
great  knowledge  and  power  of  our  age,  our 
boasted  civilization,  may  be  a  source  of  danger, 
may  even  threaten  its  own  existence,  may  pre- 
pare for  its  own  overthrow.  Emerson  has  said, 
'  The  soul  of  improvement  is  the  improvement 
of  the  soul,"  and  civilization  does  not  in  itself 
secure  this.  All  men  have  equal  rights  but  all 
men  do  not  have  equal  ability.  It  is  right  to 
develop  the  individual  to  his  highest  powers  but 
the  incentive  should  be  not  for  him  the  one, 
but  for  humanity  for  the  all.  The  equality  of 
rights  applies  to  the  inequality  of  ability.  There 
are  men  much  stronger  in  many  ways  than 
others — in  grasping  knowledge  and  power,  be- 
coming leaders,  employers,  capitalists.  The 
grasping  of  the  knowledge  and  power  of  the  age 
by  the  strong  makes  them  stronger,  but  does 
not  change  their  character.  If  they  have  a 
selfish  spirit  they  will  become  more  selfish  by 
its  indulgence,  and  will  trample  on  the  many  and 
the  weak. 

This  evidently  leads  to  social  conflict  and  even 
threatens  the  destruction  of  civilization.     In  our 


« THE  HOLY  CATHOLIC  CHURCH"    155 

cultured  and  rich  land  we  have  immense  riches 
in  the  possession  of  a  comparatively  few,  a  large 
middle  class  of  the  prosperous  and  well  to  do, 
and  alas  also  a  wide-spread  poverty — a  large 
number  of  people  who  have  difficulty  in  earning 
a  poor  living.  Resulting  we  have  great  com- 
binations of  wealth,  of  capital  ever  seeking 
greater  wealth,  and  great  combinations  of 
labour  seeking  higher  wages,  shorter  hours, 
better  conditions. 

The  frequent  conflicts  of  capital  and  labour 
threaten  a  growth  of  class  distinction  and  class 
hatred  destructive  of  civilization.  The  at- 
tempt to  control  these  combinations  and  con- 
tests by  law  and  force  is  within  the  province  of 
national  organization,  and  shows  the  limitations 
of  our  social  order,  and  evidently  is  not  an 
adequate  remedy  for  the  growing  evil. 

The  spirit  of  the  strong  must  be  changed 
from  a  selfish  to  a  Christlike  spirit;  the  hope  of 
doing  this  is  only  in  the  Christian  Church.  The 
Church  is  to  preach  Christ  as  the  Saviour  and 
further  is  to  preach  and  show  the  nature  of  His 
salvation — that  it  is  Christlikeness.  The  owner 
of  a  tenement  house  to  be  a  Christian  must 
have  the  interests  of  his  tenants  at  heart.  The 
owner  of  a  factory  to  be  a  Christian  must  try  to 
conduct  his  factory  as  Christ  would  conduct  it. 
The  president  of  a  railroad,  the  owner  of  a  coal 
mine,    the    director   of   a    corporation    to   be   a 


156  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

Christian  must  try  to  conduct  his  business  as 
Christ  would  conduct  it.  So  labour,  the  great 
power  to  develop  the  world,  to  be  Christian 
must  have  the  spirit  of  Christ  seeking  the  good 
of  all.  This  kind  of  church  teaching  and  living 
appeals  to  the  highest  manhood  and  prevents 
the  scandal  to  religion  arising  from  the  many 
unchristian  lives  of  its  professed  followers. 

The  Church  may  and  should  sit  down  by  the 
weak  and  oppressed,  the  poor  and  the  sick, 
should  administer  the  needed  sympathy  and 
charity  to  them,  should  cheer  the  suffering  with 
the  consciousness  of  a  present  and  sympathiz- 
ing God  and  should  hold  before  them  the  hope 
of  a  better  life  to  come. 

But  far,  far  more  than  these  loving  minister- 
ings  it  should  preach  and  live  in  a  way  to  incite 
to  a  Christlike  life.  It  should  replace  selfish- 
ness and  greed  as  motives  in  grasping  the 
wealth  and  power  of  the  age  with  love  for 
Christ  and  for  humanity,  for  mankind  He  came 
to  save.  It  should  replace  Adam  Smith's  rule, 
"  Every  one  for  himself  in  the  competition  of 
life,"  with  Christ's  golden  rule,  "  Do  unto  others 
as  you  would  have  others  do  to  you."  To  say 
that  politics  in  national  life,  that  international 
relations,  that  business  on  a  large  scale  cannot 
be  carried  on  by  the  golden  rule  of  Christ  is  to 
banish  Him  from  the  great  affairs  of  social  life. 
The  Kingdom  of  God  includes  all  humanity  and 


"THE  HOLY  CATHOLIC  CHUKCH"    157 

the  golden  rule  is  the  law  and  the  spirit  of  the 
King  of  Kings  and  Lord  of  Lords. 

The  mission  of  the  Church  is  to  proclaim  this 
truth  and  to  live  this  life.  Loyalty  to  Christ 
includes  loyalty  to  one's  nation — and  far  more, 
loyalty  to  mankind;  includes  patriotism — and 
far  more,  humanity.  Loyalty  to  Christ  includes 
church  life,  home  life,  social  life  and  business 
life.  To  exclude  either  kind  of  life  from  the 
golden  rule,  to  exclude  small  business  affairs  or 
the  largest  business  affairs  from  the  golden  rule, 
is  to  be  untrue — disloyal  to  Christ. 

We  should  surely  rejoice  in  the  high  civiliza- 
tion of  the  present  age  in  our  favoured  land 
and  in  Christian  lands  generally,  but  we  cannot 
help  seeing  its  dangers  and  particularly  its 
limitations.  If  the  soul  conscious  of  its  sin,  of 
its  need  of  forgiveness,  of  its  need  of  a  new  life 
to  overcome  its  selfishness  comes  to  the  high 
civilization  of  to-day  and  asks  for  needed  help 
it  receives  no  answer;  the  lips  of  science  with 
all  its  learning  and  culture,  the  lips  of  power, 
with  all  its  wisdom  and  wealth,  are  dumb  before 
such  a  cry  of  the  soul. 

Only  the  Church  can  help  such  a  soul;  it 
brings  that  needy  soul  to  Christ  the  Saviour. 
He  gives  forgiveness  and  new  life.  Then  the 
Church  welcomes  that  believing  soul  into  her 
fellowship.  Thus  the  Church  becomes  a  social 
force ;  within  itself  awakening  the  spirit  of  fel- 


158  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

lowship  in  the  true  worship  of  a  growing  Christ- 
likeness:  and  without  itself,  in  each  community, 
country  or  city,  asking  what  would  Christ  do 
here,  finding  the  needs  of  a  community,  of  a 
nation,  of  the  world;  and  then  awakening  all  its 
dormant  power  in  the  enthusiastic  work  of  min- 
istering. It  is  the  body  of  Christ,  the  repre- 
sentative of  Christ  in  all  lands. 


XII. 

Ye  are  fellow  citizens  with  the  saints  and 
of  the  household  of  God. — Eph.  2:  19. 

"THE  COMMUNION  OF  SAINTS" 

THE  ninth  article  of  the  Apostles'  Creed 
contains  two  kindred  statements;  the 
first  we  have  just  considered,  the  sec- 
ond, "  I  believe  in  the  communion  of  saints," 
is  now  before  us. 

In  the  New  Testament  the  members  of  the 
Church  are  frequently  called  saints;  some  of  the 
Epistles  are  addressed  to  such.  It  was  a  gen- 
eral designation  of  all  believers  in  Christ  who 
had  confessed  Him  in  becoming  members  of 
His  Church.  It  is  quite  reasonable  then  that 
a  creed  made  up  of  the  statements  of  the 
Apostles  should  speak  of  the  members  of  the 
Church  as  the  saints — that  is  the  holy  ones. 
Nowadays  the  word  has  dropped  out  of  com- 
mon usage:  the  world  generally  does  not  call 
the  members  of  the  Church  saints,  nor  do  the 
members  of  the  Church  venture  to  call  them- 
selves saints.     As  the  ages  passed  on  from  the 

159 


160  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

times  of  the  New  Testament  the  name  saint 
became  confined  to  those  distinguished  by  spe- 
cial holiness  of  life,  or  those  distinguished  by 
special  fidelity  in  trial,  as  the  martyrs.     That 
both  the  world  and  the  Church  have  ceased  to 
use  the  name  for  all  confessed  Christians  may 
be  regarded  as  a  high  tribute  to  the  ideal  of 
Christlikeness,  but  the  word  also  has  lost  some 
of  the  incentive  of  the  New  Testament  usage. 
The  Apostle  Paul  in  writing  the  Epistles  did 
not  regard  the  members  of  the  Church  as  per- 
fect in  holiness,  for  he  frequently  rebukes  errors 
of  teaching  and  life  and  exhorts  to  growth  in 
character  and  service.     So  Christ  Himself  did 
not  regard  His  Apostles  and  disciples  as  per- 
fect,  but   He   taught   them   to   recognize   each 
other  as  disciples  and  to  love  each  other  as  He 
loved  them.     The  designation  then  is  a  great 
honour  and  a  noble  incentive;  the  followers  of 
Christ  are  to  regard  themselves  as  saints  and 
to  live  such  lives  that  the  world  shall  know  them 
as  saints. 

In  the  text  the  Apostle  speaks  of  new  rela- 
tionships formed  by  believing  in  Christ,  "  Ye 
were  strangers  and  foreigners,"  without  alle- 
giance to  Christ  or  love  for  Him;  now  "ye  are 
fellow-citizens  with  the  saints,"  obeying  the 
laws  and  being  loyal  to  the  kingdom  of  heaven, 
"  and  of  the  household  of  God,"  inmates  of  the 
home  established  by  God,  members  of  the  fam- 


"THE  COMMUNION  OF  SAINTS"    161 

ily,  governed  by  family  feelings,  and  having  the 
fellowship  of  family  life.  The  communion  of 
the  saints  is  then  their  recognizing  each  other 
and  sharing  with  each  other  the  possessions, 
rights,  privileges  and  duties  of  the  citizenship 
and  family  life  they  have  in  Christ.  Here,  as 
in  the  other  articles,  the  "  I  believe  "  includes 
the  intellectual  recognition  of  such  a  communion 
of  life  and  privilege  and  especially  a  personal 
sharing  in  it. 

What  do  the  saints  have  in  common,  and 
what  is  their  spirit  of  fellowship  in  their  com- 
mon possessions?  We  may  in  a  single  sentence 
describe  it.  They  have  one  source  of  life— it  is 
in  Christ.  They  have  one  manner  of  life — it  is 
growing  like  Christ.  They  have  one  service 
in  the  world— it  is  proclaiming  Christ.  They 
have  one  destiny— it  is  to  be  with  Christ  for- 
ever. There  are  various  degrees  of  this  life 
and  its  manifestations,  many  shining  lives  rec- 
ognized at  once  as  saints,  many  dim  lives,  but 
having  some  Christ  life  and  so-called  saints, 
set  apart  to  the  service  of  God. 

Now  as  we  think  of  our  communion  of  the 
saints  there  are  manifestly  two  great  parts  of 
the  one  glorious  fellowship.  The  one  is  gen- 
eral—it is  largely  grasped  by  the  imagination. 
It  includes  the  far-off  in  time  and  space.  The 
other  is  special — it  is  real  in  its  presence  with 
us  here  and  now. 


162  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

With  regard  to  the  general,  we  look  back 
through  the  ages.  We  have  fellowship  with 
the  saints  of  the  early  Church;  as  the  Church 
spreads  among  nations  we  have  fellowship  with 
the  saints  in  Egypt,  in  Armenia,  in  Greece,  in 
Rome.  As  the  ages  pass  on  our  fellowship 
embraces  the  saints  among  our  race-ancestry 
of  Northern  Europe ;  and  so  we  come  down  to 
recent  years.  There  has  been  a  great  variety 
of  belief,  of  worship,  of  character.  But  the  life 
separated  from  the  world  as  belief  in  Christ  can 
be  distinguished,  and  our  interest  in  that  life 
and  obligation  to  it  should  be  gratefully  rec- 
ognized. 

Now  we  take  a  wide  look  over  the  great 
world  of  to-day.  Some  lands  are  Christian 
lands.  Not  all  the  inhabitants  of  these  lands 
are  confessed  Christians,  but  such  large  num- 
bers are,  that  the  lands  are  called  Christian. 
Some  lands  are  heathen  lands,  but  in  nearly  all 
these  there  are  Christian  missions  and  some 
confessed  followers  of  Christ.  So  on  all  conti- 
nents and  on  the  islands  of  the  sea  the  wide 
world  over  there  are  great  numbers  of  saints. 
There  is  a  great  variety  of  saints — those  just 
coming  out  of  savagery,  those  in  gross  igno- 
rance, those  holding  widely  different  views  of 
some  truths  from  ourselves,  and  having  widely 
different  manners  and  customs,  but  the  life 
separate  from  the  world  as  belief  in  Christ  can 


"THE  COMMUNION  OF  SAINTS"     163 

be  distinguished  and  with  that  life  we  have 
communion,  fellowship. 

The  Christian  Church  is  the  largest  organi- 
zation in  the  world  to-day.  It  is  composed 
of  those  acknowledging  Christ  as  their  Lord. 
Christ  is  the  source  of  our  common  life.  Race 
characteristics,  mental  powers,  habits  of  think- 
ing and  living  from  a  long  ancestry  make 
great  variety  in  creed,  worship,  life.  But 
the  common  source  of  the  distinctive  life, 
aim  of  life,  service  of  life,  destiny  of  life,  is 
from  Christ.  Sectarian  pride,  the  spirit  of  self- 
righteousness,  all  magnifying  of  self  must  give 
way  to  Christian  love,  acknowledging  the 
Christ  life  wherever  found,  as  the  Apostle  says, 
"  Who  are  we  to  judge  another  man's  servant? 
To  his  own  master  he  standeth  or  falleth." 
We  are  cheerfully  to  recognize  the  Christ  life, 
and  share  in  its  development,  and  help  in  its 
spread.  We  also  are  helped  as  others  pray  for 
us,  as  others  incite  and  inspire  us  by  their  ex- 
amples in  widely  different  circumstances  from 
our  own.  We  are  not  all  alike,  but  each  in  his 
own  sphere  of  time  and  space  makes  his  own 
contribution  of  hue  and  colour  to  the  one 
Christlikeness  and  service  we  all  have  in  com- 
mon. 

Now  let  the  imagination  strive  to  see  and  feel 
this  general  communion  of  the  saints  of  all  ages 
and  climes.     Untold  millions  of  our  fellows  have 


164  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

come  out  from  the  world,  confessed  Christ  and 
so  lived  their  lives  that  we  have  in  our  day  be- 
come Christians,  entered  into  their  glorious  fel- 
lowship and  noble  life.  Untold  millions  are  now 
separating  from  the  world,  confessing  Christ 
and  living  His  life  in  all  lands  the  wide  world 
over.  They  are  one  with  us  in  love  and  aim. 
Untold  millions  will  in  the  ages  to  come  receive 
from  our  hands  the  glorious  trust  and  great 
commission  until  the  final  triumph,  and  Christ 
shall  reign  in  all  lands  and  all  hearts.  Untold 
millions  have  passed  on,  are  passing  on,  and  will 
pass  on  to  the  glorious  life  at  Christ's  right 
hand.     I  believe  in  the  communion  of  saints. 

It  is  a  great  kingdom — the  Kingdom  of  God. 
We  have  the  communion  of  citizenship.  We 
are  citizens  of  heaven  even  while  on  the  earth. 
It  is  a  great  family.  God  the  Father  through 
Jesus  Christ.  We  are  members  of  this  family. 
Christ  our  Elder  Brother  acknowledges  the 
family  likeness.  "  They  that  do  the  will  of  my 
Father  in  heaven  are  my  brothers  and  sisters." 

It  is  through  these  loyal  citizens — these 
members  of  the  noble  family — that  three  im- 
portant agencies  of  vast  influence  have  been 
established  and  flourish  in  the  world. 

The  first  is  the  public  worship  of  the  right- 
eous God.  On  country  hillsides  and  city  streets 
stand  church  buildings ;  their  doors  are  invit- 
ingly open,  their  bells  ring  out  a  welcome,  and 


"THE  COMMUNION  OF  SAINTS"    165 

multitudes  assemble  in  them  at  times  to  wor- 
ship God.  The  influence  upon  the  nation,  upon 
those  who  never  take  part  in  such  worship,  is 
very  great,  and  in  all  ages  and  lands  large  num- 
bers accept  the  invitation  and  welcome  and  be- 
come the  worshippers  of  God. 

The  second  is  the  circulation  of  the  Bible. 
Its  fine  literature  of  narrative,  poetry  and 
oratory  has  impressed  itself  upon  our  English 
literature;  and  besides  and  above  this  it  car- 
ries the  purest  morals  and  noblest  ideals  to  all 
lands;  and  above  all  it  bears  the  supernatural 
revelation  of  God,  culminating  in  Jesus  Christ, 
in  many  languages  to  many  races  of  mankind. 
The  influence  of  the  Bible  cannot  be  overesti- 
mated. 

The  third  agency  is  the  Christian  Sabbath. 
The  rest  day  so  characteristic  of  Christian  lands 
is  the  rich  blessing  bestowed  upon  the  workers 
of  the  world.  Many  such  weary  toilers  not  only 
rest  from  their  work  but  refresh  their  spirits 
by  communing  with  the  Father  of  their  spirits. 
So  much  of  greatest  value  lies  in  the  general 
communion  of  the  saints.  Our  imagination 
fails  to  grasp  its  full  significance,  but  as  much 
as  we  can  grasp  stirs  the  heart  with  love  and 
praise. 

We  now  turn  from  the  general  to  the  spe- 
cial— from  the  far  off  in  time  and  space  to  the 
near  by  to-day.     I  believe  in  the  communion  of 


166  THE  APOSTLES'  CKEED 

saints — those  I  am  associated  with  in  our 
Church,  in  our  country,  town  or  city.  There 
are  a  great  variety  of  saints  in  every  individual 
church,  as  in  every  denomination,  and  in  the 
Church  universal.  In  our  individual  church 
many  have  inherited  from  Christian  parents 
traits  of  Christian  character;  they  have  grown 
up  in  Christian  surroundings,  they  have  been 
taught  and  cultured  in  the  knowledge  and  like- 
ness to  Christ.  Many  others  have  been  rescued 
from  the  habits  and  tendencies  to  sin  ;  they  have 
from  infancy  lived  in  the  gloom  of  evil,  have 
worn  the  chains  of  sinful  habits.  In  their  mature 
age,  perhaps  in  their  old  age,  the  radiant  Christ 
has  opened  their  prison  doors  and  struck  off 
their  chains,  and  they  are  His  followers.  In 
other  cases  many  have  had  the  sickness  and 
weakness  of  sin,  have  been  in  the  shadow  of 
death,  and  the  gentle  hand  of  the  good  physician 
has  been  laid  upon  their  brow  and  they  look  up 
with  loving  eyes  to  his  kind  face,  and  follow 
him.  All  kinds  of  characters  are  in  our  church 
of  varied  history,  propensities,  strength,  but 
they  have  the  one  distinguishing  feature  now — 
life  in  Christ  and  some  traits  of  Christlikeness. 
Their  attainments,  their  dispositions,  their  con- 
ditions are  widely  different  but  they  are  called 
to  be  saints;  they  are  saints  in  Christ.  I  recog- 
nize them  as  such.  We  are  fellow-citizens;  we 
are  members  of  the  same  family. 


"THE  COMMUNION  OF  SAINTS"    167 

Then,  too,  in  our  church  there  are  all  social 
grades.  There  are  the  ignorant  and  the  cul- 
tured, the  dull  and  the  bright,  the  active  and 
the  inactive,  the  employer  and  the  employed, 
the  lady  of  fashion  and  the  maid  of  all  work, 
the  rich  and  the  poor.  The  Church  is  the  one 
organization  in  the  world  embracing  such  wide 
distinctions,  giving  to  all  her  members  equality 
of  rights  and  privileges,  of  opportunities  and 
duties;  herein  is  her  glory  to  the  world,  and 
herein  is  her  incentive  to  kindly  judgment  and 
helpful  fellowship  among  all  her  members. 

As  she  embraces  widely  different  characters 
and  conditions  she  becomes  a  strong  binding 
force  in  social  life,  checking  many  tendencies 
threatening  the  disintegration  of  society,  and 
inciting  to  many  tendencies  for  society's  highest 
development.  In  this  wide  variety  of  church 
membership  lies  also  the  high  exercise  of  the 
communion  of  saints.  What  we  have  in  com- 
mon overflows  and  conquers  our  differences; 
the  saintly  becomes  more  saintly  in  triumphing 
over  the  natural.  Each  one  in  this  communion 
of  saints  recognizes  in  the  other  the  beginning 
of  Christlikeness — sympathizes  with  and  helps 
the  other  in  overcoming  the  old  nature,  is 
faithful  and  considerate  and  helpful  in  cultivat- 
ing the  Christlikeness.  Thus  the  wide  variety 
of  character  and  condition,  the  great  diversity 
among  the  saints,  finds  a  unifying  principle  in 


168  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

recognition,  in  consideration,  in  Christian  fel- 
lowship. 

The  rich  have  consideration  for  the  poor,  the 
poor  have  sympathy  for  the  rich — both  are 
brothers  in  Christ.  The  employer  and  the  em- 
ployed in  the  house,  in  the  store,  in  the  factory, 
try  to  think  and  act  as  such  in  the  other's  place 
—they  are  brothers  in  Christ.  The  cultured 
and  the  ignorant,  the  quick-tempered  and  the 
sluggish,  vie  with  each  other  in  consideration 
for  each  other,  arising  out  of  recognition  of  their 
relation  to  Christ.  "  Love  one  another  as  I 
have  loved  you,"  was  Christ's  direction  to  His 
disciples  as  He  bade  them  farewell  before  His 
death.  The  communion  of  the  saints  is  the 
carrying  out  of  this  command.  It  is  the  tradi- 
tion that  the  heathen  used  to  say  of  church 
members — "Behold  how  these  Christians  love 
one  another."  Alas,  the  world  no  longer  calls 
members  of  the  Church  saints  nor  do  we  ven- 
ture to  call  ourselves  saints,  and  it  may  not  be 
quite  so  manifest  in  these  latter  as  in  those 
earlier  days  that  Christians  love  one  another, 
but  still  that  is  the  ideal  each  one  adopts  when 
he  says  "I  believe  in  the  communion  of  saints." 

We  are  fellow-citizens  of  the  Kingdom  of 
God — we  are  proud  of  the  relationship.  We  are 
members  of  the  family  of  our  Father  in  Christ— 
we  are  keen  to  recognize  family  resemblances. 
We  love  one  another  not  as  a  hard  task,  an  irk- 


"  THE  COMMUNION  OF  SAINTS  "    169 

some  duty — love  cannot  act  in  such  ways — but 
because  each  sees  in  the  other  something  lovely, 
some  feature  of  the  Christlikeness. 

Another  great  feature  of  this  near-by  com- 
munion of  saints  in  to-day's  stirring  life  is  the 
sharing  in  the  great  privilege  of  preaching 
Christ  to  the  world.  In  the  early  days  it  was 
not  only  ordained  ministers  who  preached  the 
Gospel;  the  truth  and  the  life  of  Christ  spread 
from  individual  believers  as  well,  and  the  reputa- 
tion of  loving  each  other,  of  the  social  fellow- 
ship, was  a  strong  commendation  of  the  Gospel 
message.  So  in  the  communion  of  saints  there 
is  the  awakened  desire  and  the  encouraging  fel- 
lowship in  seeking  to  win  souls  to  Christ,  to 
bring  into  the  fellowship  of  the  saints  others 
from  the  world  who  are  now  strangers  and  for- 
eigners, who  are  now  sinners,  that  they  may 
become  saints.  What  is  nowadays  called  per- 
sonal work  for  Christ,  friend  with  friend,  ac- 
quaintance with  acquaintance,  soul  with  soul, 
flows  from  the  communion  of  saints  and  con- 
stantly adds  to  this  communion. 

A  legend  of  ancient  times  in  England  which 
has  been  the  subject  of  so  much  painting,  poetry 
and  music  illustrates  our  theme.  The  knights 
of  King  Arthur  had  varied  talents  but  formed  a 
circle  of  chivalric  spirits.  From  this  group  Sir 
Galahad,  the  blameless  knight,  went  forth  in 
quest  of  the  Holy  Grail,  the  cup  Christ  had  used 


170  THE  APOSTLES'  CKEED 

in  the  first  communion  supper.  He  thus  sought 
deeper  fellowship  with  Christ  and  His  follow- 
ers. On  this  quest  he  came  to  the  enchanted 
castle  in  a  gloomy  forest  guarded  by  knights 
of  an  evil  character  but  strong  and  well  armed — 
a  quite  vivid  picture  of  a  soul  in  the  gloom  and 
power  of  sin.  Sir  Galahad  met  the  seven  black 
knights  in  fierce  conflict  and  disabled  them. 
Over  their  prostrate  forms  he  advanced  to  the 
castle  gate.  Now  there  was  a  strange  trans- 
formation; the  castle  was  no  longer  depressed 
in  a  gloomy  forest  but  was  standing  out  on  a 
sunny  hilltop :  but  it  was  still  enchanted.  All 
within  were  sound  asleep.  Sir  Galahad  knocked 
time  and  time  again  with  the  hilt  of  his  sword 
against  the  castle  gate,  but  with  no  result.  At 
length  there  was  a  stir  within,  and  soon  the  gate 
was  thrown  open  and  there  issued  forth  twelve 
maidens,  "  each  as  fair  as  any  flower,"  and  wel- 
comed their  deliverer  from  sin  and  death.  From 
that  time  on  the  castle  became  the  joy  of  all 
the  countryside. 

The  seven  black  knights  were  the  seven 
deadly  sins,  holding  the  soul  in  bondage.  The 
twelve  fair  maidens  were  the  Christian  virtues 
and  graces  awakened  by  the  call  of  Christ.  The 
Apostle  gives  us  names  of  the  graces  in  Gala- 
tians  5 :  22,  and  eloquently  describes  the  car- 
dinal virtues  in  1  Corinthians  13,  and  the  great- 
est of  these  is  love. 


"THE  COMMUNION"  OF  SAINTS"    171 

Can  one  imagine  the  honour  and  joy  of  Sir 
Galahad  seeking  fellowship  with  his  Saviour 
and  thus  turning  a  soul  from  death  to  life? 

I  believe  in  the  communion  of  the  saints  may 
express  itself  with  a  modern  poet: 

I  live  for  those  who  love  me, 

For  those  who  know  me  true, 

For  the  heaven  that  smiles  above  me, 

And  awaits  my  coming  too. 

For  the  cause  that  lacks  assistance, 

'Gainst  the  wrongs  that  need  resistance, 

For  the  future  in  the  distance 

For  the  good  that  I  can  do. 

Such  an  one  has  a  goodly  fellowship,  is  a  citizen 
of  a  glorious  kingdom,  a  member  of  a  royal 
family. 


XIII. 

Through  this  man  is  proclaimed  unto  you 
remission  of  sins. — Acts  13 :  38. 

"  THE  FORGIVENESS  OF  SINS  " 

IF  the  Apostles'  Creed  ended  with  the  only- 
clause  of  individual  blessing  to  be  fully 
enjoyed  in  this  life  as  pardon  it  would  be 
a  tame  conclusion  of  a  great  creed.  We  need 
pardon  undoubtedly,  but  that  can  never  meet 
our  full  need,  nor  can  it  satisfy  the  craving  of 
our  hearts;  only  forgiveness  can  do  this.  So 
the  creed  says,  "  I  believe  in  the  forgiveness  of 
sins."  Here  as  elsewhere  the  belief  is  not 
simply  the  intellectual  acknowledgment  that 
there  is  such  forgiveness,  but  a  personal  ex- 
perience I  have  the  forgiveness  of  sins. 

Now  we  look  at  the  text  and  we  hear  a  procla- 
mation of  forgiveness  of  sins  through  Jesus 
Christ  and  it  follows  the  assurance  that  the 
believer  in  Christ  is  justified  in  Him,  and  this 
follows  from  the  crucifixion  and  resurrection 
of  Christ  as  is  set  forth  earlier  in  this  chap- 
ter of  the  Acts.  This  is  the  distinguishing  fea- 
ture of  the  Christian  religion — the  forgiveness 
of  sins  though  complete  and  full.  This  was  the 
subject  of  the  early  preachers,  both  of  Apostles 

172 


"THE  FORGIVENESS  OF  SINS"     173 

and  of  all  others,  those  set  apart  to  preach,  and 
also  all  believers.  It  was  their  joyous  privilege 
to  experience  this  forgiveness  of  sins,  and  to 
spread  abroad  the  proclamation  of  God  to  all 
men  of  this  forgiveness  through  Jesus  Christ 
who  by  dying  for  them  and  now  living  for  them 
justifies  all  who  believe  in  Him. 

Why  did  Christ  die  for  us?  To  remove  all 
that  would  hinder  the  forgiving  love  of  God 
reaching  us.  Why  did  Christ  die  for  us?  Be- 
cause the  forgiving  love  of  God  sought  in  this 
costly  way  to  forgive  and  so  save  us.  What 
does  the  forgiving  love  of  God  through  Jesus 
Christ  do  for  us?  It  breaks  down  our  opposi- 
tion to  God,  our  coldness,  our  hard-hearted 
dullness,  our  enmity,  and  awakens  penitence 
and  longing  for  reconciliation  and  new  life  of 
love  and  obedience. 

It  is  therefore  of  great  importance  that  we 
should  have  right  views  and  appreciation  of  the 
forgiveness  of  sins.  Justification  and  pardon 
are  matters  of  legal  relations.  Forgiveness  is 
a  matter  of  personal  relations.  Only  a  judge 
in  court  can  pronounce  one  just,  that  the  law 
has  nothing  against  him,  that  he  is  entitled  to 
all  results  of  obedience  to  the  law.  Only  a 
governor  or  president  can  pardon  a  man,  free 
him  from  the  penalty  of  the  law  and  restore 
him  to  citizenship  under  the  laws  of  the  state. 
But  a  friend  may  forgive  a  friend — the  forgive- 


174:  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

ness  removes  hard  feelings  from  both  hearts. 
Now  we  recognize  at  once  that  there  is  no 
place  for  forgiveness  in  the  office  of  either  a 
judge  or  a  governor.  His  dearest  friend  may 
stand  before  him  convicted  of  an  offence  against 
the  law;  the  judge  can  only  sentence  him, 
though  it  may  be  with  tears  flowing  down  his 
cheeks.  The  governor  must  not  yield  to  per- 
sonal feelings;  he  must  uphold  the  laws  of  the 
state.  He  cannot  pardon  his  best  friend, 
though  he  pleads  for  such  pardon  with  sobs ; 
there  must  be  other  reasons  aside  from  feeling 
to  justify  the  exercise  of  pardoning  power. 

Now  we  turn  from  the  small  affairs  of  our 
state  laws,  the  laws  among  men,  and  from  our 
weak  but  clear  sense  of  justice,  to  the  great 
affair  of  the  law  of  our  being,  and  our  sense  of 
justice  here.  The  law  is  the  transcript  of  the 
divine  nature  and  the  description  of  our  nature 
as  God  designs  us  to  be.  Love  God  supremely, 
love  your  fellow  men  as  you  love  yourself. 
Have  we  kept  it?  Are  we  keeping  it?  Our 
own  conscience  being  the  judge,  we  condemn 
ourselves  as  sinners,  guilty  of  breaking  the  law 
of  God,  the  fundamental,  deep  and  all-inclusive 
law  of  our  being.  No  little  thing  this,  but  the 
greatest  conceivable.  What  must  the  Judge 
who  knows  us  altogether  do?  What  can  He 
do  but  sentence  us?  What  must  the  King  do — 
or  shall  we  venture  to  use  the  language  of  our 


"THE  FORGIVENESS  OF  SINS"      1Y5 

land  to-day — what  must  the  Governor  of  the 
Universe  do?  What  can  He  do  but  leave  us 
under  the  penalty  of  broken  law?  There  is  no 
place  here  in  Judge  or  Governor  for  forgiveness, 
for  feeling,  only  for  justice. 

Now  when  we  look  at  the  other  side,  at  the 
one  indited  before  a  court  of  our  land  for  some 
offence,  and  the  court  frees  him,  pronounces 
him  just  in  the  sight  of  the  law,  that  verdict 
does  not  say  anything  about  the  character  of 
the  man;  he  may  not  have  committed  that  par- 
ticular offence  and  still  be  capable,  even  prone 
to  commit  such  offences,  nor  does  it  in  any  way 
change  his  character;  it  may  foster  a  bad  char- 
acter. So  when  a  governor  for  reasons  of  state 
pardons  a  man,  the  man  may  at  heart  be  a  bad 
citizen,  and  the  pardon  does  not  change  his 
character;  it  may  confirm  it.  Again  these  are 
little  affairs — particular  offences  against  some 
state  law — little  compared  with  our  offence 
against  the  law  of  God,  the  violation  of  the  law 
of  our  whole  being.  Here  too  there  is  char- 
acter back  of  all  violated  law,  in  our  case  a  cor- 
rupt character.  We  cannot  conceive  of  God  as 
approving  or  confirming  this  corrupt  character. 
Our  only  hope  of  ever  being  saved  is  in  His 
justice.  He  must  maintain  the  righteous  law 
of  our  being  in  our  own  esteem  and  before  all 
mankind. 

Now  while  a  judge  or  a  governor  ought  not 


176  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

to  be  swayed  by  personal  feelings,  he  may  have 
them,  and  have  them  very  strongly.  It  is  hardly 
conceivable,  yet  he  may  be  the  father  of  the 
culprit,  and  the  character  and  act  of  the  culprit 
may  be  the  hardest  blows  ever  struck  against 
the  father's  heart.  While  he  may  want  to  free 
his  guilty  son  from  all  penalty  of  the  law,  he 
knows  that  will  not  be  for  the  upholding  of  the 
law,  neither  will  it  be  good  for  the  son;  it  will 
encourage  him  in  a  wayward  character.  The 
judge  must  punish  the  son  or  the  law  is  under- 
mined in  the  esteem  of  all  the  citizens  of  the 
state.  The  social  life  is  injured ;  he  must  pun- 
ish the  son  or  there  is  the  terrible  likelihood 
that  the  son  himself  will  be  confirmed  both  in 
wounding  the  father's  heart  and  in  warring 
against  the  social  welfare  of  the  state.  It  is 
hardly  conceivable,  yet  the  father's  love  for  the 
son  may  be  so  great  that  he  would  sacrifice  him- 
self for  the  son,  but  he  cannot  devise  a  way. 
The  laws  of  the  state  will  not  allow  him  to  step 
down  from  the  bench  of  the  court,  or  from  the 
chair  of  the  state,  and  take  the  place  of  his  son 
in  the  prison,  and  so  free  his  son.  They  make 
no  provision  for  such  action.  Could  he  do  that, 
and  should  he  do  that,  it  would  proclaim  to  all 
who  heard  of  it  how  he  valued  the  law  of  the 
land,  and  specially  how  deeply  he  loved  his  son; 
and  certainly  no  stronger  appeal  could  possibly 
be  made  by  the  father  to  the  latent  power  of 


"  THE  FOKGIVENESS  OF  SINS  »      177 

good  that  might  remain  in  the  son  to  turn  back 
from  evil  and  love  his  father. 

While  it  is  possible  such  a  deep  self-sacrific- 
ing love  may  exist  in  a  father's  heart  it  is  no  re- 
flection upon  judges  and  governors  to  say  that 
such  a  case  has  not  been  recorded  in  the  history 
of  the  race,  nor  is  it  a  reflection  upon  human 
laws  to  discover  no  provision  for  its  exercise. 
There  is  much  self-sacrificing  love  in  human 
hearts — citizens  for  their  country,  men  and 
women  for  a  cause,  friends  for  friends,  parents 
for  their  children;  wherever  found  and  however 
pure  and  strong  it  may  be  it  is  but  a  faint 
glimmer  of  the  divine  likeness  remaining  in  us. 
It  comes  from  the  infinite  self-sacrificing  love 
of  the  Father  of  our  spirits.  With  us  it  does 
not  always  act  with  full  knowledge  of  the  case, 
with  singleness  of  aim  for  the  highest  good,  and 
with  wisdom.  With  God  this  strong  attribute 
of  His  nature  is  always  infinitely  wise  and  good. 
God  is  love  and  the  highest  manifestation  of 
His  love  is  His  sending  His  only  begotten  Son 
into  the  world  to  be  the  propitiation  for  our 
sins  that  we  might  live  through  Him.  So  the 
forgiveness  of  sin  flows  from  the  infinite  love 
of  God,  and  this  love  in  maintaining  the  law 
flows  to  us  through  Jesus  Christ,  by  whom  be- 
lievers are  justified. 

Now  to  be  justified  clearly  means  that  God 
the   Judge   pronounces   one   just;   there   is   no 


178  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

penalty  of  violated  law  due  Him ;  on  the  con- 
trary he  is  entitled  to  all  the  rewards  of  obedi- 
ence to  law.  He  is  a  good  citizen.  How  can 
this  ever  be  brought  about  in  our  case?  We 
know  we  are  sinners,  under  the  penalty  of  the 
law.  How  can  we  be  justified?  Only  through 
the  self-sacrificing  love  of  God  in  His  Son  Jesus 
Christ  taking  our  place,  bearing  our  penalty  of 
sin  and  by  His  righteousness  entitling  us  to  the 
rewards  of  obedience,  and  this  being  ours 
through  our  union  with  Him  by  believing  in 
Him.  That  which  human  laws  could  not  de- 
vise, human  sacrifice  could  not  accomplish,  the 
infinite  love  and  wisdom  of  God  our  Father  in 
Christ  has  wrought  for  us.  It  seems  beyond 
our  grasp,  but  there  are  several  forces  familiar 
to  us  in  our  lives,  in  our  social  relations  which 
throw  much  light  upon  the  wondrous  plan  of 
our  salvation. 

We  have  already  seen  some  of  the  splendid 
actions  of  self-sacrificing  love — in  the  family,  in 
the  community,  in  the  state.  We  are  also 
familiar  with  one  person  taking  the  place  of 
others  for  certain  purposes,  and  the  others  be- 
coming entitled  to  the  results  of  his  action. 
Our  member  of  Congress  represents  us  in  mak- 
ing laws.  Our  judges  represent  the  people,  in- 
terpreting and  applying  laws.  Our  governors 
and  presidents  represent  the  state  and  nation, 
enforcing  the  laws.     Our  President  represents 


"  THE  FORGIVENESS  OF  SINS  "     179 

the  whole  nation— a  hundred  million  people  to 
the  whole  world.  This  idea  of  representation 
runs  through  all  our  social  life— in  the  family, 
the  community,  the  nation,  the  race  of  man- 
kind. There  must  be  a  tie  of  nature  and  a  social 
recognition  of  it.  Our  President  must  be  a  citi- 
zen of  our  nation,  and  we  recognize  his  ability 
by  electing  him  to  his  office,  and  then  we  abide 
by  the  results  of  his  action.  This  familiar  idea 
of  representation — one  acting  for  others — is  so 
inherent  in  our  nature  that,  as  with  self-sacri- 
ficing love,  it  seems  to  have  come  from  the 
nature  of  our  Creator,  God. 

We  are  the  creatures  of  God.     He  is  infinitely 
above   us.     If  He   in   His   self-sacrificing  love 
should  consent  to  represent  us  and  we  should 
recognize  that  tie,  the  infinite  dignity  and  worth 
of  our  representative  would  secure  for  us  all 
that  He  secured  for  Himself,  and  by  faith  we 
receive  as  represented  in  Him  our  share.     So 
Jesus  Christ  the  Son  of  God  became  man— our 
representative  received  by   faith.     He  lived   a 
life  absolutely  free  from  all  penalty  due  Him, 
but  He  endured  our  penalty,  He  entered  into 
our  condition,  He  died  for  our  sins.     He  abso- 
lutely deserved  all  rewards  of  obedience  to  law. 
Now  as  He  represents  us,  we  are  freed  from 
all  penalty,  and  we  are  entitled  to  all  reward, 
as  He  has  won  these  by  representing  us,  and 
as  we  receive  these  by  faith  in  Him. 


180  THE  APOSTLES'  CEEED 

We  often  find  in  the  Scripture  the  thought 
of  suretyship  and  redemption — sometimes  fully 
described  in  social  affairs  and  state  relations  in 
such  a  way  to  lift  our  thoughts  to  the  great  re- 
demption wrought  for  us  by  Jesus  Christ.  In 
our  state  laws  to-day  we  have  suretyship  in 
money  matters,  not  in  life  matters;  these  are 
beyond  the  reach  of  human  laws  and  human 
sacrifice.  In  money  matters  one  often  becomes 
surety  for  another  and  in  time  of  disaster  be- 
cause of  this  suretyship  redeems  his  friend  from 
his  distress.  It  may  be  for  small  amounts  or 
large  amounts,  the  principle  is  the  same,  and 
acknowledged  by  our  laws  as  just,  as  real;  it  is 
not  a  fiction,  it  is  a  real  transfer  of  debt  based 
upon  a  tie  of  nature  or  friendship  or  mere  busi- 
ness accommodation.  Sometimes  the  relation 
may  be  very  close.  A  father  may  become  a 
surety  for  his  son.  He  sets  his  son  up  in  busi- 
ness, indorses  his  notes  at  the  bank,  or  his  bor- 
rowings from  others.  Time  passes  on;  the 
notes  or  bonds  expire.  The  son  cannot  pay 
them;  the  father  pays  the  whole.  Does  the 
debt  no  longer  exist?  No,  in  all  honour  and 
affection  the  son  owes  the  whole  amount  to  the 
father,  and  besides  a  large  debt  of  love  for  his 
having  taken  his  son's  place  before  the  law  in 
such  money  affairs. 

That  which  is  so  familiar  to  us  in  our  social 
relations  throws  some  light  upon  the  stupendous 


"  THE  FORGIVENESS  OF  SINS  »     181 

subject  of  our  relations  to  God  and  His  rela- 
tion to  us.  It  is  not  a  fiction  of  law,  it  is  a  real 
and  important  transaction.  God  teaches  us 
about  it  in  our  relations  with  each  other,  in 
representation  in  suretyship,  especially  in  ties 
of  affection  binding  hearts  and  lives  together. 

This  is  the  only  article  in  the  Apostles'  Creed 
that  mentions  the  word  sin.  It  is  very  im- 
portant to  call  things  by  their  right  names.  We 
sometimes  think  of  sin  as  an  infirmity,  a  weak- 
ness; it  is  something  more — choice  enters  into 
it.  We  sometimes  speak  of  it  as  a  mistake,  an 
error;  it  is  something  more  than  choosing  as 
right  what  proves  to  be  wrong;  often  the  only 
error  is  that  of  judging  as  desirable  and  profit- 
able that  which  is  in  its  nature  injurious.  We 
sometimes  speak  of  ourselves  as  victims  of  cir- 
cumstances, ensnared  by  temptation;  but  we 
reflect  that  temptation  does  not  bring  evil  to 
us — it  only  appeals  to  the  evil  in  us.  The 
Scriptures  say  that  sin  is  the  transgression  of 
law;  that  whosoever  sins  may  be  weak,  may 
make  a  mistake,  may  be  tempted,  may  be  many 
other  things,  but  the  one  thing  that  covers  all 
and  goes  beyond  all,  and  that  he  should  always 
recognize  is  that  he  transgresses  the  law.  Now 
such  sin  may  come  from  willfulness;  he  does  the 
forbidden  thing  because  he  wants  to  do  it;  or  it 
may  come  from  indifference  to  God.  He  may 
be  a  good  man  relatively,  a  good  father,  a  good 


182  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

citizen,  but  lie  pays  no  attention  to  the  law  of 
his  being;  he  does  not  love  God,  nor  his  neigh- 
bour as  himself.  Let  us  not  deceive  ourselves. 
Sin  is  transgression  of  law — the  law  of  God,  the 
law  of  our  being;  we  violate  it,  willfully  or  care- 
lessly. Carelessly  we  do  not  care  for  our 
Father,  God;  willfully  we  will  not  let  Him  rule 
over  us.  We  see  this  goes  down  to  the  depth 
of  our  nature;  from  this  nature  particular  acts 
of  sin  arise.  Deceit,  for  instance,  may  be  nega- 
tive, letting  a  man  remain  deceived  as  to  a  cer- 
tain matter;  or  positive,  deceiving  him  in  the 
matter;  but  we  say  at  once  it  transgresses  the 
law  of  love  of  God  and  man.  It  is  a  bad  thing 
among  savages  in  Africa,  among  half  civilized 
in  the  Philippines,  a  bad  thing  in  the  rural  dis- 
tricts, in  trading  a  horse ;  a  bad  thing  in  selling 
stock  on  Wall  Street,  in  social  life  and  in  family 
life,  in  the  slums  of  the  city  or  on  Fifth  Avenue ; 
a  bad  thing,  a  transgression  of  law,  wherever 
found  and  in  whatever  degree  of  careless  in- 
difference to  or  willful  disregard  of  God. 

Now  there  are  two  things  that  we  recognize 
at  once  from  transgression  of  law.  There  is 
pollution  in  sin,  that  is  its  nature;  it  is  the 
reverse  of  the  moral  health  and  well-being  de- 
fined by  the  law  of  our  being;  it  has  many  de- 
grees, but  that  is  its  nature;  and  it  confirms  and 
deepens  itself  the  longer  it  exists  and  the  more 
it  acts.     The  second  thing  arising  from  trans- 


«  THE  FORGIVENESS  OF  SINS  "      183 

gression  of  law  is  guilt,  its  desert  of  punishment, 
the  penalty  of  the  broken  law. 

With  reference  to  these  both  there  are  some 
things  that  cannot  be  changed  and  should  never 
be  ignored.  Take  the  instance  we  have  just 
considered — deceit.  A  certain  man  deceives  a 
man  or  woman  at  a  certain  time.  That  is  a 
fact;  it  cannot  be  changed — it  is  written  in- 
destructibly on  the  record  of  events.  That  act 
had  an  influence  upon  the  one  deceived,  upon 
others  who  knew  of  it;  it  is  written  indestruc- 
tibly on  the  sensitive  record  of  human  lives. 
That  act  had  an  influence  upon  the  deceiver  as 
well — he  is  a  worse  man  for  it.  Shall  we  say 
that  record  is  indestructible  too?  We  must 
pause  and  reflect  a  while  before  we  are  forced 
to  answer  it  must  be.  Surely  neither  pardon 
nor  forgiveness  can  alter  either  of  these 
stupendous  facts.  But  the  deceiver  may  recog- 
nize that  he  has  sinned,  that  he  has  wronged 
the  man  or  woman  beyond  repair,  that  he  has 
thus  wronged  a  creature  of  God  whom  God 
values  highly,  and  in  so  doing  he  has  wronged 
God.  He  also  has  wronged  himself,  made  him- 
self a  worse  man  by  his  indulgence,  and  he  also 
is  a  creature  of  God,  whom  God  values  highly, 
and  so  he  has  wronged  God.  He  has  sinned 
against  God. 

He  begins  to  recognize  the  nature  of  sin;  he 
begins  to  abhor  himself,  that  he  was  capable 


184  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

of  such  an  act.  He  begins  to  see  the  extent 
of  his  sin,  that  he  is  capable  of  kindred  acts,  and 
he  begins  to  abhor  himself  a  sinner.  Now  he 
begins  to  ask,  What  does  God  think  of  me? 
Surely  He  must  abhor  sin,  He  must  hate  that 
which  I  recognize  in  myself  as  hateful.  The 
penalty  of  broken  law  shows  what  God  thinks 
of  sin;  it  is  His  just  indignation  against  sin. 
Then  God  hates  me,  is  indignant  with  me. 
Hold  on,  friend !  God  will  not  cast  you  off 
while  there  is  the  slightest  possibility  of  separat- 
ing you  from  your  sin.  He  will  magnify  the 
law,  He  will  express  His  just  indignation  against 
its  violation,  and  you  are  under  its  penalty.  But 
He  so  loves  you  that  He  bears  your  penalty  for 
you.  He  the  great  Judge,  He  the  noble  Gov- 
ernor, is  also  your  Father,  and  never  a  father 
on  earth  loved  a  son  as  He  loves  you;  so  He 
will  bear  the  penalty  due  you,  and  Jesus  Christ 
bears  it  upon  the  cross,  that  He  may  free  you 
from  it. 

Does  this  forgiving  love  that  leads  the 
Saviour  to  take  your  place  and  bear  your  curse 
appeal  to  you?  Does  it  win  your  trust,  your 
gratitude,  your  obedience?  Then  it  saves  you 
from  more  than  the  punishment  of  sin — it  saves 
from  sin  itself.  To  be  pronounced  just,  free 
from  all  penalty,  entitled  to  the  rewards  of 
obedience — surely  that  is  wonderful ;  but  it  is 
very  little  compared  with  forgiveness.     To  be 


"  THE  FOEGIVENESS  OF  SINS  "      185 

pardoned,  to  be  saved  from  penalty,  is  as  noth- 
ing compared  with  being  saved  from  sin.  In 
God's  heart  saving  from  penalty  is  a  means  of 
saving  from  sin  itself.  The  forgiving  love  of 
God  in  bearing  the  penalty  Himself  awakens  in 
our  hearts  abhorrence  of  sin,  turning  away  from 
sin,  a  new  spirit  of  obedience  and  love  of  God, 
and  so  saves  from  sin  itself.  Evil  causing  suf- 
fering may  remain  a  large  portion  of  our  ex- 
periences in  this  life,  but  it  has  no  longer  the 
nature  of  penalty;  it  is  God's  fatherly  love  dis- 
ciplining us  out  of  our  sinfulness.  Defects  may 
remain — the  results  of  the  weakening  power  of 
sin  in  us — but  the  general  principles  and  direc- 
tion of  life  are  thoroughly  changed ;  no  longer 
away  from  God  but  now  turned  to  Him  in  loving 
obedience. 

It  is  told  that  Chrysostom,  the  golden 
mouthed  orator,  awakened  the  hatred  of  the 
emperor  who  called  his  counsellors  and  said, 
"How  shall  we  injure  Chrysostom?"  One 
said,  "  Confiscate  his  property."  The  Emperor 
answered,  "That  will  not  injure  him.  You 
only  rob  the  poor  he  cares  for."  Another  said, 
"  Banish  him."  The  Emperor  answered, 
"  That  will  not  injure  him.  He  will  make 
friends  wherever  he  goes."  Another  said,  "  Kill 
him."  The  Emperor  answered,  "  That  will  not 
injure  him — it  will  send  him  to  heaven."  Then 
a  wise  counsellor  said,   "  Induce  him  to  sin." 


186  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

"  Yes,"  said  the  Emperor,  "  that  would  injure 
him,  but  it  is  the  one  thing  we  with  all  our 
power  and  influence  cannot  do,  for  he  hates 
sin."  I  know  there  are  many  to-day  who  can- 
not be  induced  to  enter  and  pursue  a  known 
course  of  sin.  The  number  embraces  all  who 
can  say  with  the  heart,  "  I  believe  in  the  for- 
giveness of  sins."  The  forgiveness  of  a  loving 
Father  at  infinite  cost  to  Himself  wins  the  for- 
given to  His  loving  obedience  and  service. 


XIV. 

This  is  the  will  of  my  Father,  that  every 
one  that  beholdeth  the  Son  and  believeth  on 
him,  shoidd  have  eternal  life:  and  I  will  raise 
him  tip  at  the  last  day. — John  6:40. 

"  THE  RESURRECTION  OF  THE  BODY  " 

THE  last  words  of  this  verse  have  been 
called  the  blessed  refrain  of  this  teach- 
ing of  Christ;  they  are  repeated  four 
times.  They  sound  like  solemn,  stately  music 
heard  in  the  darkness  and  the  stillness  of  the 
night.  "  I  will  raise  him  up  at  the  last  day." 
They  seem  to  refer  to  the  resurrection  of  the 
body  as  the  culmination  of  the  redeeming  work 
of  Christ  beyond  which  there  is  no  more  evil. 

Not  only  did  John  write  these  words  as  com- 
ing from  the  lips  of  Christ,  His  anticipation  of 
final  triumph,  but  Paul  speaks  to  the  bereaved 
Thessalonians :  "Your  dead  shall  share  in  the 
triumph  of  Christ;  fallen  asleep  they  shall  rise 
first  and  be  forever  with  the  Lord."  Also  to 
the  Corinthians  he  writes:  "Christ  hath  been 
raised  from  the  dead,  the  first-fruits  of  them 
which  are  asleep.     They  that  are  Christ's  will 

187 


188  THE  APOSTLES'  CKEED 

be  raised  from  the  dead  at  his  coming."  So  we 
find  in  the  Apostles'  Creed  the  clear  statement: 
"  I  believe  in  the  resurrection  of  the  body." 
Here,  as  always,  the  "  I  believe  "  includes  the 
intellectual  acknowledgment  of  the  fact  and  also 
the  personal  trust  of  the  believer — Christ  will 
raise  me  from  the  dead. 

What  are  we  to  understand  by  the  resurrec- 
tion of  the  body?  Of  Christ's  resurrection  we 
have  already  meditated  in  the  fifth  article  of  the 
creed.  He  is  the  first-fruits.  Of  our  resurrec- 
tion, as  we  think  of  His,  and  of  the  general 
teaching  of  the  Scripture,  we  recognize  two 
facts,  each  hard  to  grasp  in  detail,  but  both 
clearly  seen;  they  are  identity  and  change. 
They  seem  contradictory,  but  in  reality  they  ex- 
plain each  other,  as  we  shall  see.  The  resur- 
rection of  the  body  is  taught  dimly  in  some 
portions  of  Scripture — clearly  in  others.  Christ 
speaks  of  it  clearly  and  emphatically,  and  the 
Apostle  Paul  in  the  fifteenth  chapter  of  First 
Corinthians  likens  the  resurrection  of  the  body 
both  as  to  identity  and  change  to  that  of  Christ 
Himself. 

The  first  important  thing  for  us  to  recognize 
is  that  it  is  a  truth  revealed  in  the  Scriptures. 
Here,  as  with  regard  to  all  such  truths,  we  con- 
clude that  since  both  books,  nature  and  the 
Scriptures,  are  from  God,  they  do  not  contradict 
but  they  supplement  each  other.     The  resur- 


"THE  RESURRECTION  OF  THE  BODY"  189 

rection  of  the  body  is  not  opposed  by  nature. 
In  fact  nature  has  many  whisperings  of  it. 
Let  us  listen  to  one  of  these  whisperings. 

There  are  two  great  classes  of  the  creation 
of  God.  The  first  is  that  of  matter,  revealed  to 
us  by  our  senses  and  by  our  consciousness  as 
well.  Some  philosophies  and  religions  look  al- 
most alone  to  matter.  In  ancient  China  there 
was  the  belief  that  the  material  principle  was 
eternal;  it  was  beneath  all  changing  forms. 
The  face  of  nature  was  feelingless,  changeless, 
and  all  forms  and  beings  were  lights  and 
shadows  passing  over  it.  In  ancient  Greece 
there  was  the  idea  of  living  matter.  The  face 
of  nature  was  full  of  light  and  feeling;  the  spark 
of  fire  was  in  the  eye,  the  tear  of  feeling  was 
on  the  cheek,  and  the  breath  of  life  stirred  the 
lips.  But  the  spark  went  back  to  the  flame, 
the  tear-drop  to  the  ocean,  the  breath  to  the 
air;  only  the  elements  remained.  So  with 
materialism  to-day.  Atoms  of  wonderful  elec- 
trons highly  endowed  come  together  in  certain 
relations  and  electricity  results;  in  other  rela- 
tions and  life  results;  in  still  other  relations  and 
mind  results.  The  atoms  separate  again  and 
mind  goes  out  of  existence.  There  of  course  is 
no  resurrection  here. 

But  the  trouble  is  that  only  one  kind  of  crea- 
tion is  being  considered.  The  answer  to  this  in 
all  ages  and  now  is  the  consciousness  of  man. 


190  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

We  know  that  thought,  feelings  of  adoration, 
powers  to  see  and  to  choose  of  the  right  are  not 
properties  of  matter,  but  acts  of  the  spirit. 
Thus  we  look  at  the  other  class  of  the  crea- 
tion of  God.  God  is  a  pure  spirit;  He  has 
created  spiritual  beings,  some  like  ourselves  in 
close  union  with  the  material  creation.  Some 
philosophies  and  religions  look  almost  exclu- 
sively to  the  spiritual.  In  India  all  things  are 
to  be  absorbed  into  the  great  spirit,  are  only 
the  manifest  breath  of  Brahm.  No  personal 
immortality  here.  In  Greece  we  find  the  idea 
of  the  spirit  living  after  the  death  of  the  body, 
but  a  limited  existence,  a  kind  of  dream  life  in 
Hades.  The  Egyptians  and  Persians  had  the 
idea  of  the  spirit  being  clothed  in  light,  but  its 
continued  existence  depended  upon  the  pres- 
ervation of  the  body;  hence  the  mummies  of 
Egypt  were  preserved,  not  to  rise  again,  but  to 
keep  the  spirit  alive.  So  some  Christian  views 
of  the  resurrection  drift  towards  a  mere  spirit 
life;  they  think  sin  resides  in  the  flesh  and  the 
spirit  will  be  freed  at  last,  a  pure  spirit.  But 
matter  and  spirit  are  not  in  conflict  in  this  re- 
spect. Sin  is  a  choice  of  the  spirit  as  well  as 
of  the  flesh:  both  are  cursed  by  sin.  Take 
away  sin,  and  they  are  in  harmony. 

Herein  then  is  the  whispering  of  nature  of 
the  resurrection  of  the  body.  Man  is  both  body 
and  spirit.     He  is  the  link  between  the  material 


"  THE  RESURRECTION  OF  THE  BODY  "  191 

and  the  spiritual  creations  of  God.  If  he  be- 
comes simply  and  forever  a  disembodied  spirit, 
the  link  is  broken;  man  as  God  created  him, 
body  and  spirit,  no  longer  exists.  If  man  is 
immortal  at  all,  he  must  be  immortal  as  body 
as  well  as  spirit,  for  so  only  is  he  man.  If  man 
is  to  be  saved  from  sin  at  all  he  must  be  saved 
as  body  as  well  as  spirit,  for  so  only  is  he  man. 
The  whispering  of  nature  is  clear  and  distinct. 
Man  is  formed  of  the  dust  of  the  earth — of  the 
material  creation.  God  breathed  into  him  and 
he  became  a  living  soul,  after  the  likeness  of 
God.  Man  is  both  matter  and  spirit,  the  link 
between  the  two,  a  union  of  the  two.  As  we 
hear  this  whisper  we  recognize  the  complete- 
ness of  the  redeeming  work  of  Christ,  the  Son 
of  Man.  His  resurrection  is  the  first-fruits. 
All  in  Him  as  their  representative  shall  be  raised 
like  unto  His  resurrection,  body  and  soul  freed 
from  all  taint  of  sin,  the  whole,  the  complete 
man  saved. 

Hence  both  nature  and  Scripture  teach  us  to 
look  upon  death  as  a  temporary  separation  of 
body  and  soul;  believers  die  in  the  Lord — they 
sleep  in  Jesus.  The  body  as  well  as  soul  is  re- 
deemed; it  belongs  to  Christ.  Wonderful  re- 
demption! He  who  governs  millions  of  stars 
watches  over  the  graves  of  His  saints,  for  He  is 
God  the  all  wise  and  the  all  loving.  Listen  to 
the  Apostle  Paul  as  he  exults  with  the  Philip- 


192  THE  APOSTLES'  CKEED 

pians :  "  For  our  citizenship  is  in  heaven,  from 
whence  also  we  wait  for  the  Saviour,  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ :  who  shall  fashion  anew  the  body 
of  our  humiliation  that  it  may  be  conformed  to 
the  body  of  his  glory,  according  to  the  work- 
ing whereby  he  is  able  to  subject  all  things  to 
himself." 

Now  we  are  not  taught  that  the  whole  body 
buried  in  the  grave  will  be  raised  at  the  last 
day.  Here  again  nature  and  Scripture  agree. 
Nature  says  the  body  will  go  back  to  the  dust : 
that  its  various  particles  of  dust  and  gas  and 
water  will  be  absorbed  by  nature,  and  will  be 
used  by  nature  in  its  many  forms  of  growth; 
but  nature  also  teaches  that  the  particles  of 
matter  forming  our  bodies  now  change  fre- 
quently during  the  few  years  of  our  present 
life.  So  the  Apostle  speaks  of  fashioning  anew 
our  bodies,  to  be  like  Christ's  glorious  body. 
The  changed  body  will  be  my  body,  each  can 
say.  The  two  great  truths  of  the  resurrection, 
as  we  said  at  the  beginning,  are  identity — my 
body — and  change,  like  Christ's  glorious  body. 

Now  we  know  there  are  several  kinds  of 
identity.  The  lowest  is  that  of  substance.  A 
cup  of  water  may  be  frozen  and  thawed;  it  may 
be  diffused  into  steam,  caught  and  condensed 
again ;  it  may  be  resolved  into  its  gases  and 
combined  again.  It  is  the  same  water  while  we 
can  trace  the  substance. 


«  THE  RESURRECTION  OF  THE  BODY  "   193 

There  is  another  and  a  higher  kind  of  identity. 
We  stand  before  Murillo's  picture,  "  The  Im- 
maculate Conception,"  in  Paris.  Wherein  does 
its  identity  consist?  Not  in  substance.  Burn 
the  canvas  and  the  paint,  and  you  might  gather 
the  substance  again ;  but  even  Murillo  if  alive 
could  not  restore  the  painting.  The  identity 
consists  in  the  form  and  colour,  the  expression 
of  the  adoration  of  the  artist.  Another  and  the 
highest  kind  of  identity  we  know  of  is  that  of 
life.  The  acorn,  the  shoot,  the  sapling,  the 
oak,  the  identity  not  of  substance,  nor  of  form, 
but  of  life.  So  the  babe  in  the  arms  of  the 
mother,  the  youth  at  college,  the  president  who 
directs  the  affairs  of  a  great  nation,  the  same 
person,  we  know  to  be  the  same,  but  the 
identity  is  not  of  substance,  or  of  form,  but  of 
life. 

In  what  the  identity  of  the  resurrection  body 
may  consist  we  know  not;  it  may  be  of  all  three 
kinds.  A  very  little  of  the  substance  which  has 
formed  our  dark  bodies  may  be  enough  for  our 
bodies  of  light:  the  form  may  be  the  same  but 
greatly  changed,  freed  from  all  defects;  the  life 
will  undoubtedly  be  the  same.  My  body,  each 
one  of  us  can  say  as  we  can  say  of  our  present 
bodies,  though  these  with  the  passing  years  are 
wonderfully  changed. 

Turn  now  from  the  identity  to  the  still  more 
wonderful   change   in   the   resurrection   of   the 


i    194  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

body.  When  we  come  to  contemplate  the 
change  wrought  upon  our  bodies  by  Christ  at 
His  coming,  the  completed  redemption,  it  is 
astonishing  how  much  the  Scripture  describes, 
when  we  bring  its  various  teachings  together. 

We  are  assured  in  the  first  place  that  our 
resurrection  body  will  be  in  the  human  form. 
So  Christ,  the  first-fruits,  rose  from  the  dead. 
He  was  greatly  changed,  not  subject  to  some  of 
the  conditions  of  our  present  life.  He  did  not 
live  with  His  disciples  as  of  yore — He  appeared 
and  vanished  at  will — but  whenever  the  dis- 
ciples saw  Him  they  knew  Him.  It  is  Jesus, 
they  said,  and  they  had  lived  with  Him  inti- 
mately and  beyond  any  doubt  knew  Him.  Not 
only  will  our  resurrection  bodies  be  as  now  in 
the  human  form  but  they  will  have  a  clear  like- 
ness to  our  present  bodies.  When  Moses  and 
Elias  met  Christ  on  the  Mount  of  Transfigura- 
tion they  were  recognized  as  leaders  in  Israel. 
Elijah  had  not  died.  He  had  been  taken  to 
heaven  in  the  chariot  of  fire.  Moses  had  died 
and  been  buried  by  God.  No  man  knew  where 
was  his  grave.  There  is  a  strange  passage  in 
Jude  about  "  Michael  the  Archangel  contend- 
ing with  the  devil  about  the  body  of  Moses  " 
which  seems  to  hint  that  Moses  appeared  on 
the  mount  in  his  resurrection  body;  both  talked 
with  Jesus  about  His  death  on  the  cross,  and 
Christ's  transfiguration  showed  the  kingdom  of 


"  THE  RESURRECTION  OF  THE  BODY  "  195 

the  heavens  touching  the  earth  as  a  glorious 
vision  of  the  future.  Now  as  we  turn  to  the 
enraptured  reasoning  of  the  Apostle  Paul  in  the 
fifteenth  chapter  of  First  Corinthians  we  see 
both  the  identity  and  the  four  great  changes  in 
our  resurrection  body. 

He  says  it  will  be  an  incorruptible  body.  Our 
present  bodies  constantly  waste  away;  while 
life  flourishes  they  are  as  constantly  restored. 
As  life  grows  feeble  in  sickness  or  age  the  bodies 
fail;  as  life  goes  out  corruption  rules.  "It  is 
sown  in  corruption,  it  is  raised  in  incorruption." 
Not  subject  to  any  sickness,  to  any  failure  of 
power,  to  the  feebleness  of  age.  The  incor- 
ruptible body. 

The  Apostle  then  teaches  us  further.  It  will 
be  a  glorious  body.  The  body  now  is  the  most 
highly  organized,  finely  finished  and  beautiful 
of  the  known  creations  of  God.  But  this  is  as 
dishonour  to  the  coming  glory,  for  the  curse  of 
sin  has  passed  upon  it,  and  it  goes  down  to 
death.  "  It  is  sown  in  dishonour,  it  is  raised 
in  glory."  The  body  comes  forth  from  death 
conquered.  No  curse  clouds  it.  It  is  raised  a 
glorious  body. 

The  disciples  on  the  Mount  of  Transfigura- 
tion fainted  at  the  sight  of  the  glory  of  Christ, 
and  of  Moses  and  Elias.  Christ  after  His  resur- 
rection remained  on  earth  forty  days  and  then 
came  the  ascension  to  the  throne  of  God.     His 


196  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

body  was  somewhat  changed  but  not  glorified 
until  His  ascension.  After  that  we  have 
glimpses  of  His  glorious  body.  Stephen  saw 
Jesus  standing  at  the  right  hand  of  God  in  glory. 
Paul  saw  Him  on  the  way  to  Damascus,  and. 
was  blinded  by  the  glory.  John  saw  Him  in 
Patmos,  when  Christ's  countenance  was  as  the 
sun  shineth  in  his  strength,  and  he  fell  at  His 
feet  as  one  dead.  But  John,  the  familiar  dis- 
ciple, knew  Jesus  though  He  was  glorified. 
Thus  our  body  of  glory  will  have  no  defect. 
All  shadow  of  sin  will  be  removed  from  the 
finest  creation  of  God.  Our  glorious  body  will 
be  like  that  of  the  Son  of  Man  now  in  heaven. 
So  also  as  John  knew  Christ  on  Patmos  we  shall 
know  our  familiar  ones,  our  loved  ones,  in  more 
than  our  highest  ideal  of  beauty.  Beyond  any- 
thing we  have  ever  known  or  dreamed  shall  be 
our  bodies  of  glory. 

What  more  can  Paul  say?  It  will  be  a  body 
of  power.  We  have  great  power  now,  but  it 
is  only  weakness  and  ends  in  weakness  com- 
pared with  the  coming  power.  Much  of  our 
power  now  comes  from  our  grasping  the  powers 
of  nature;  we  have  grasped  the  power  of  steam, 
the  power  of  electricity;  but  of  how  much  we 
are  still  in  ignorance.  Our  dominion  over 
nature  while  large  is,  we  all  recognize,  not  com- 
plete because  of  ignorance,  because  of  disobey- 
ing laws,  because  of  sin.     We  cannot  even  hin- 


"  THE  RESURRECTION  OF  THE  BODY  "   197 

der  the  decay  of  our  powers;  we  die  after  a  few 
years.  "  It  is  sown  in  weakness.  It  is  raised 
in  power."  The  power  we  shall  share  with 
Christ — shall  reign  with  Him.  Complete 
power.  What  new  senses  we  may  have  we 
know  not.  What  new  power  of  present  senses 
we  know  not.  What  new  powers  in  nature 
about  us  we  may  know  and  grasp  we  know  not. 
Shall  the  eye  unaided  have  greater  power  than 
now  with  telescope?  Shall  we  pass,  as  now 
our  thoughts  may  pass,  with  the  rapidity  of 
thought  from  star  to  star  in  the  vast  universe — 
contemplating  the  glory  of  God,  flying  to  do 
the  will  of  God?  These  are  not  wild  dreams, 
unfounded  expectations,  "  for  eye  hath  not  seen, 
nor  ear  heard,  neither  hath  it  entered  into  the 
heart  of  man  what  God  hath  prepared  for  them 
that  love  him." 

The  Apostle  has  one  more  statement  of  a 
marvellous  change.  "  It  is  sown  a  natural 
body,  it  is  raised  a  spiritual  body."  Our  present 
bodies  are  fitted  for  the  present  life.  The 
changed  resurrection  body  will  be  fitted  for 
the  spiritual  life.  Our  eyes  are  often  dull  to 
the  good  and  beautiful,  and  strong  to  the  evil 
and  the  ugly.  So  our  tongue  and  our  hands 
are  often  prone  to  the  evil  of  our  nature  and 
surroundings.  Then  our  eyes  will  see  new 
beauties  of  the  good,  our  hands  will  be  ready 
servants  of  God   and  our  tongues  full  of  His 


198  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

praise.  My  body,  identity,  but  marvellously 
changed  to  the  purity  of  the  heavenly  life. 
Even  now  the  spirit  is  sometimes  so  pure  and 
strong  that  it  shines  through  our  natural  body. 
So  Moses'  face  shone  as  he  came  down  from 
the  mount  of  vision.  So  Stephen's  face,  as  he 
bore  witness  for  Christ,  was  as  the  face  of  an 
angel.  Perhaps  we  have  seen  some  face  shine 
with  a  saintly  light — a  mother  beautiful  in  char- 
acter, or  a  father  strong  in  allegiance  to  Christ. 
So  as  we  look  forward  to  the  resurrection  the 
identity  is  secured,  it  is  sown,  it  is  raised,  and 
the  change  is  beyond  our  highest  possible 
thought.  It  is  the  change  of  the  new  life — 
the  body  is  incorruptible,  glorious,  powerful, 
spiritual. 

Now  what  is  the  Resurrection?  It  is  the 
culminating  glory  of  the  Person  and  work  of 
Christ.  By  faith  we  have  seen  His  glory  in 
eternity,  the  beloved  of  the  Father;  in  creation, 
bringing  the  glory  of  the  universe  into  being; 
in  redemption  His  glory  of  self-sacrifice  as  He 
hangs  upon  the  cross ;  in  heaven  His  glory  upon 
the  throne  of  universal  dominion.  But  we  look 
forward  to  His  complete,  triumphal  glory  when 
He  shall  come  again  with  all  the  holy  angels 
with  Him  and  at  His  word  of  command  His 
redeemed  ones  will  arise  in  glory  and  be  for- 
ever with  the  Lord.  As  when  a  great  artist 
removes  the  veil  from  his  masterpiece  and  says 


"  THE  RESURRECTION  OF  THE  BODY  "   199 

to  his  admiring  friends,  See  my  life-work,  so 
God  shall  say  to  the  assembled  universe,  See 
my  finished  work.  As  the  visible  heavens,  stars 
and  systems  are  shining  with  light  and  so  de- 
clare my  glory.  As  ye  pure  spirits  around  my 
throne  are  shining  in  holiness  and  so  declare  my 
glory.  So  behold  the  being,  man,  who  joins 
the  two,  the  material  glory  and  the  spiritual 
glory;  he  has  been  long  clouded  by  sin  but  the 
cloud  I  have  driven  away.  See  the  countless 
ranks  of  mankind  stand  forth,  the  glory  of  the 
material  and  the  glory  of  the  spiritual  combined 
forever.  See  Jesus  Christ,  my  beloved  Son  with 
His  redeemed  ones,  redeemed  in  body  and  soul. 
He  the  first-fruits,  they  joined  to  Him  now  in 
their  order. 

What  comfort  this  brings  to  us  dying  men! 
We  are  called  to  bury  our  beloved  dead. 

"  There  is  no  flock  however  watched  and  tended 
But  one  dead  lamb  is  there. 
There  is  no  fireside  howsoe'er  defended 
But  has  one  vacant  chair." 

We  mourn  the  parting,  but  have  a  glorious 
hope.  Our  loved  ones  are  with  Christ  now,  and 
blessed;  they  will  be  raised  again  when  Christ 
comes,  glorious  ones. 

As  a  mother  puts  her  tired  children  to  bed 
when  night  comes,  kisses  them  good-night  and 
prays  by  the  bedside,  her  heart  is  filled  with  love 


200  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

and  joy,  for  she  knows  that  when  the  morning 
light  comes  they  will  rise  again,  rosy  with  health 
and  happiness,  to  a  new  day. 

We  look  forward  to  our  own  death.  We  shall 
lie  down  in  the  grave.  We  need  not  try  to 
stay  the  hand  of  corruption,  for  we  must  be 
changed.  Death  is  ours.  Our  Saviour  has 
passed  through  the  grave  to  the  light  and  glory 
of  the  resurrection.  Death  is  now  the  opening 
of  the  gates  into  a  glorious  life. 

"  Why  should  we  start  at  the  creaking  of  the  door, 
When  we  know  there  is  light  and  welcome  in  the 
room  beyond." 


XV. 

And  this  is  life  eternal  that  they  should 
know  thee  the  only  true  God  and  him  whom 
thou  didst  send,  even  Jesus  Christ. 

—John  17:3. 

"THE  LIFE  EVERLASTING" 

THERE  are  two  remarkable  things  about 
these  words  of  our  Saviour.  The  first 
is  that  this  is  the  only  time  of  which 
we  have  any  record  that  He  used  His  full  name 
by  which  we  now  know  Him — Jesus  Christ. 
Jesus,  the  Saviour  and  Christ,  the  anointed  one, 
the  prophet,  priest  and  king- — the  names  so 
frequently  given  Him  by  the  Apostles  after  His 
resurrection.  The  added  saying,  "  whom  thou 
didst  send,"  and  the  prayer,  "  glorify  thy  Son 
that  thy  Son  may  glorify  thee,"  and  the  clear 
statement  that  "  God  had  given  him  authority 
over  all  flesh  to  give  Christ's  full  eternal  life  to 
all  God  had  given  him,"  these  together  show 
consciousness  of  both  His  divine  nature  and 
mission. 

The  second  remarkable  thing  is  that  our 
Saviour  here  gives  us  a  definition  of  eternal 
life — a  full  description  of  it,  which  may  thus 

201 


202  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

be  regarded  as  authoritative.  The  last  state- 
ment of  the  Apostles'  Creed  is,  "  I  believe  in  the 
life  everlasting."  I  believe  in  its  existence,  I 
trust  I  have  it  in  my  experience. 

We  cannot  do  better  than  attend  to  our 
Saviour's  description  of  eternal  life.  What  is 
it?  Men  are  apt  to  form  wrong  views  of  the 
life  everlasting.  We  think  mainly  of  its  dura- 
tion— conscious  existence  prolonged  into  eter- 
nity. Of  course  this  is  part  of  the  truth  as 
taught  in  the  Scriptures,  but  it  is  a  very  small 
part  of  it.  We  see  at  once  that  to  prolong  the 
life  of  a  fly  into  eternity  would  fall  far  short 
even  of  our  idea  of  eternal  life.  The  first  glance 
at  this  teaching  of  Christ  puts  the  emphasis  not 
on  duration  but  upon  the  kind  of  life  that  en- 
dures. The  kind  of  life  belonging  to  eternity  is 
to  know  God  and  Jesus  Christ  whom  He  has 
sent.  It  begins  now,  it  may  be  experienced  to- 
day, and  in  its  very  nature  it  is  eternal — the 
highest  kind  of  life  known  in  the  wide  creation, 
the  kind  of  life  that  is  deathless;  it  cannot  pass 
out  of  existence — it  must  live  forever. 

Is  there  a  kind  of  life  that  can  never  die?  Is 
there  an  eternal  life?  There  may  be  a  general 
impression  that  the  Bible  says  there  is  and  that 
nature  says  there  is  not.  This  is  a  great  mis- 
take. The  Bible  and  nature  never  contradict 
each  other.  Nature  has  many  striking  teach- 
ings concerning  eternal  life,  beginning  with  the 


"THE  LIFE  EVEKLASTING"         203 

lowest  form  of  life  and  showing  an  advanc- 
ing principle  or  power  in  all  its  ascending 
ranks. 

Nature  teaches  first  of  all  that  life  even  of 
the  lowest  grade  is  the  gift  of  God.  We  may 
know  all  the  elements  that  compose  a  living 
organism.  We  may  gather  these  from  earth 
and  air  and  sea  in  exact  proportion  and  in 
proper  condition.  All  is  dead;  no  living  or- 
ganism results,  wait  we  ever  so  patiently.  The 
blade  of  grass,  we  know  all  its  elements,  but  we 
cannot  make  it  live.  The  summer  insect,  we 
may  know  all  its  elements,  but  we  cannot  make 
it  live.  Whence  the  life?  Only  from  the  realm 
of  life.  Whence  this  realm  of  life?  Only  from 
the  great  Life-Giver — from  God,  the  ever  living 
God. 

Nature  in  the  next  place  shows  us  a  vast  pro- 
fusion of  life,  in  various  grades.  The  Apostle 
Paul  in  First  Corinthians  speaks  of  various 
kinds  of  vegetable  life  also;  of  the  bodies  of 
men,  of  beasts,  of  birds,  of  fishes,  of  bodies  of 
the  earth  and  of  the  heavens,  of  one  star  differ- 
ing from  another  star  in  glory.  The  astronomer 
tells  of  other  systems  beside  our  solar  system 
that  probably  are  inhabited  by  various  races  of 
beings.  The  geologist  tells  of  the  ranks  of  be- 
ings who  have  lived  upon  the  earth  in  past  ages. 
The  biologist  and  zoologist  describe  innumer- 
able ranks  of  beings  living  now  upon  the  earth. 


204  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

What  does  the  Apostle  teach?  What  do  scien- 
tists teach?  What  does  the  universe  teach? 
All  teach  the  one  clear  lesson — there  is  no  limit 
to  God's  creating  power. 

Nature  shows  us  in  the  third  place  a  remark- 
able law  of  life.  The  principle  of  life  forms 
from  the  elements  of  nature  many  organisms, 
each  after  its  own  kind.  Now  the  various 
grades  of  organisms  enrich  themselves  and  pro- 
long their  existence  by  a  power  within  them  of 
adapting  themselves  to  their  surroundings. 
This  power  is  of  various  degrees,  but  its  nature 
is  the  same,  and  the  ascending  degree  seems  to 
be  the  increasing  power  of  knowing,  and  so  of 
adapting  itself  to  its  wider  surroundings.  This 
is  a  strange  intimation  of  the  knowing  Christ 
speaks  of  in  the  text.  The  lower  ranks  of  life 
are  in  harmony  with  few  surroundings  and  so 
are  poor,  weak,  and  quickly  pass  away.  The 
higher  ranks  are  in  harmony  with  wider  sur- 
roundings— are  rich,  strong  in  knowing,  and  so 
live  longer.  Look  at  this  broad  spreading  tree 
in  the  open  field — the  wide  universe  for  its  sur- 
rounding, but  it  knows  nothing  of  it.  Here 
crawls  a  snail;  it  knows  little,  is  slow  of  move- 
ment; an  ox  comes  and  crushes  it,  a  bird  swoops 
down  and  eats  it.  The  bird  has  higher  life, 
knows  more,  is  in  harmony  with  wider  sur- 
roundings. The  ox  comes  and  the  bird  flies 
up  to  the  branches  of  the  tree.     The  frost  comes 


"THE  LIFE  EVERLASTING"         205 

and  the  bird  flies  to  warmer  climes.  Here 
comes  a  man.  He  has  fuller  knowledge;  he 
foresees  the  coming  winter.  He  cuts  down  the 
tree  for  fuel,  kills  the  ox  for  food;  he  stretches 
forth  his  hands  and  all  climes  minister  to  his 
needs.  He  keeps  an  active,  far-reaching  mind. 
He  looks  up  to  the  sky.  He  reads  books  in  the 
long  winter  evenings  and  distant  suns  are  part 
of  his  environment.  So  in  nature  the  grades 
of  life  in  their  power  of  adapting  themselves  in 
growing  degree  to  their  surroundings  and  so 
enriching  and  prolonging  their  existence  fairly 
force  the  mind  to  the  conception  of  a  life  hav- 
ing a  power  of  adapting  itself  to  eternal  sur- 
roundings and  so  becoming  eternal  in  nature 
and  existence;  and  further  they  show  a  proba- 
bility that  God,  the  life-giver  who  made  the 
lower  forms  in  such  profusion  and  in  ascending 
scale,  would  make  the  higher  life  more  like  and 
in  harmony  with  Himself. 

This  brings  us  to  the  fourth  great  teaching  of 
nature,  that  the  probable  eternal  life  must  be  of 
the  spirit  and  in  harmony  with  spiritual  sur- 
roundings. The  surroundings  that  are  material 
as  far  as  we  know  them  are  so  subject  to  change 
that  all  life  in  harmony  with  them  alone  must 
change,  must  pass  away.  Besides  a  possible 
catastrophe,  as  in  the  geologic  ages,  nature 
intimates  that  the  time  will  come  when  the  sun 
will  die  out  and  the  stars  fade  away  and  our  cold 


206  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

dark  earth  will  have  no  living  being  upon  it  as 
it  flies  through  space.  We  must  look  for 
eternal  life  above  changing  matter  to  the  realm 
of  spirit — a  spirit  in  harmony  with  God  the 
Spirit,  the  great  Life-Giver. 

Now  when  we  come  to  the  teachings  of  the 
Bible  they  only  carry  on  and  make  more  plain 
the  teachings  of  nature.  There  is  a  spirit  ex- 
istence which  the  Bible  calls  death — the  death 
of  sin — alive  in  some  sense  but  dead  to  harmony 
with  God,  in  rebellion  and  estrangement  from 
Him.  In  our  material  life  here  we  know  of 
existence  deprived  of  full  rich  life.  A  man  is 
deaf;  he  is  alive,  and  still  he  is  dead  to  all  the 
realm  of  sounds ;  music  hath  no  charms — the 
voices  of  loved  ones  never  reach  him.  A  man 
is  blind;  all  beauty  of  form  and  movement,  of 
light  and  colour  is  shut  out  from  him.  A  man 
may  be  alive  and  still  insensible.  Touch  him 
and  he  feels  it  not.  The  hand  of  love  upon  his 
brow  awakens  no  response.  So  the  spirit  may 
exist  and  still  be  blind,  deaf  and  insensible  to 
God — may  be  cut  off  by  its  own  act  from  all 
harmony  with  spiritual  surroundings,  cut  off 
from  God.  This  surely  is  not  eternal  life.  We 
can  hardly  think  of  it  as  mere  eternal  exist- 
ence; while  it  lasts  it  is,  as  the  Bible  says, 
death — not  knowing  God. 

Here  we  recall  the  saying  of  our  Saviour  just 
before  His  description  of  eternal  life.     It  is  the 


"THE  LIFE  EVERLASTING"         207 

glory  of  God  to  give,  to  send  Christ  into  the 
world,  to  bestow  eternal  life,  to  take  the  blind- 
ness, the  deafness,  the  insensibility  of  the  soul 
away,  to  redeem  sinners  from  their  sins.  "  I 
believe  in  the  life  everlasting  " — the  full  life  of 
the  spirit.  The  Saviour  describes  it  as  know- 
ing God  and  Jesus  Christ  whom  He  has  sent. 
This  is  evidently  a  peculiar  kind  of  knowledge — 
the  highest  conceivable. 

Nature  teaches  that  life  is  enriched  and  pro- 
longed by  the  knowledge  of  one's  environment. 
This  is  so  of  man,  who  stands  at  the  head  of  all 
beings  upon  the  earth.  Now  man's  environ- 
ment is  wide  and  varied,  and  man's  knowledge 
of  it  may  be  great  and  may  bring  him  into  har- 
mony with  it  in  a  large  degree.  Our  knowl- 
edge of  nature  and  its  forces,  of  all  the  sciences 
and  the  arts;  our  knowledge  of  our  fellow  men 
and  their  achievements — the  history,  the  litera- 
ture, the  government  of  the  world ;  our  knowl- 
edge of  our  fellow  men  about  us  in  all  the  af- 
fairs of  this  life,  all  we  call  civilization — its 
stores  of  the  past,  its  rich  gifts  of  the  present — 
how  this  wide  knowledge  enriches  and  ennobles 
life  and  prolongs  it  as  well.  Our  knowledge 
may  possess  all  we  have  just  recounted  and  yet 
not  be  eternal  life. 

Eternal  life  is  to  know  the  only  true  God 
and  Jesus  Christ  whom  He  has  sent,  to  know 
the  person   God  as  revealed  in  Jesus  Christ. 


208  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

This  is  the  highest  conceivable  knowledge,  that 
of  the  personal  God. 

Now  there  are  three  ways  in  which  we  may 
know  a  person,  and  it  seems  all  three  are  needed 
to  make  our  knowledge  full. 

There  are  two  great  truths  of  which  man  is 
conscious:  I  am — I  have  personal  existence; 
and  God  is — beyond  all  my  eyes  behold  in  the 
wide  universe  God  is.  He  has  given  me  my 
personality.  He  too  is  a  person.  I  am  from 
Him,  dependent  upon  Him  and  somewhat  like 
Him,  a  person. 

The  first  way  in  which  we  may  know  a  per- 
son is  by  knowing  something  of  his  works.  We 
may  never  see  the  man — he  may  have  passed 
away  centuries  ago — but  he  was  the  builder  of 
some  vast  cathedral;  he  was  an  artist  of  some 
great  painting  or  oratorio  or  poetry;  he  was  a 
statesman  in  some  turning  point  of  the  history 
of  the  race ;  or  he  may  be  living  now  and  we  are 
familiar  with  his  works.  We  may  know  much 
of  his  ability  and  character  from  his  works. 
So  we  may  know  much  of  God  from  His  works 
in  nature — about  His  power  and  His  character; 
but  it  is  a  limited  and  distant  knowledge.  The 
worship  of  God  in  nature  alone  is  the  worship 
of  eternal  silence. 

The  second  way  in  which  we  may  know  a 
person  is  from  what  he  says  of  himself  and 
from  what  others  say  of  him.    The  great  artist 


"THE  LIFE  EVERLASTING5'  209 

of  centuries  ago  has  written  his  autobiography, 
or  his  intimate  friend  and  admirer  has  written 
about  him  as  he  saw  and  knew  him.  So  the 
great  statesman  of  the  present  day  tells  in  some 
great  speech  of  his  plans  and  purposes,  or  some 
one  who  is  close  to  him  by  many  ties  of  co- 
operation writes  about  him  fully  and  frankly. 
It  is  obvious  our  knowledge  of  him  in  this  way 
is  much  larger  and  finer  than  in  the  first  way; 
and  if  it  can  be  added  to  the  first  it  widens  and 
enriches  our  knowledge  greatly. 

So  from  nature  we  turn  to  the  Bible  to  know 
God.  We  see  how  He  reveals  Himself  super- 
naturally  in  His  dealings  with  our  fellow  men ; 
we  hear  what  He  says  of  Himself  in  precept 
and  in  promise,  and  of  how  He  is  just  and 
righteous  and  loving;  how  He  calls  back  wan- 
dering men  and  welcomes  their  trust  and  love. 
We  see  what  God  says  and  does,  and  we  also 
hear  what  men  who  have  trusted  Him,  and 
have  followed  Him  in  His  plans  and  purposes, 
and  so  learned  of  Him,  say  of  Him.  It  is 
obvious  this  knowledge  of  God  is  larger  and 
finer  than  that  we  have  of  Him  from  nature 
alone,  and  that  added  to  the  first  it  brings  Him 
near  to  us.  Still  this  combined  knowledge  is 
largely  knowing  about  God  as  distinguished 
from  knowing  God. 

The  third  way  in  which  we  know  a  person  is 
by  intimate  companionship  with  him.     We  have 


210  THE  APOSTLES'  CEEED 

much  in  common  with  him ;  he  may  be  greater 
and  higher  in  position  than  we  are  or  can  ever 
hope  to  be,  but  there  is  something  in  us  that 
discerns  and  appreciates  something  in  him,  and 
so  learns  to  know  him  intimately.  He  is  our 
friend — admits  us  to  his  confidence — and  we 
find  in  him  qualities  we  admire,  and  so  know 
him,  and  we  constantly  grow  in  this  knowing. 
We  recognize  that  one  must  have  some  of  the 
same  quality  in  himself  before  he  can  see  and 
appreciate  that  quality  in  another — truthful- 
ness, it  may  be,  or  purity,  or  devotion  to  the 
right;  and  that  whatever  the  quality  is  it  grows 
by  fellowship  with  the  other.  We  recognize 
this  is  the  highest  and  fullest  knowledge  one 
person  can  have  of  another;  that  it  must  be 
added  to  the  other  kinds  of  knowledge  to  make 
our  knowledge  complete.  We  know  not  only 
about  the  person,  we  know  the  person  himself. 
In  our  meditation  upon  the  Apostles'  Creed  this 
has  been  continually  kept  in  mind.  I  believe, 
as  we  have  passed  over  each  article,  has  in- 
cluded I  have  an  intellectual  acceptance  of  the 
truth  about  the  being  described,  and  I  have  also 
the  trust  in  him — the  experience  of  the  truth. 
This  is  evidently  the  kind  of  knowledge  Christ 
means  when  He  says,  "  This  is  eternal  life,  to 
know  God  and  Jesus  Christ  whom  he  has  sent." 
To  know  Him  in  His  works  of  creation  and  re- 
demption, to  know  Him  as  He  speaks  of  Him- 


"THE  LIFE  EVERLASTING"         211 

self  and  as  others  tell  of  Him,  and  also  to  know 
Him  by  my  personal  trust  in  Him  as  my  Father 
and  Saviour,  the  trust  that  recognizes  His  good- 
ness and  love,  that  finds  in  Him  a  full  supply  for 
my  penitence,  for  my  longing  for  the  good,  for 
my  spiritual  hunger  for  spiritual  fellowship;  to 
find  a  full  response  to  all  my  longing  for  Him, 
this  is  eternal  life. 

This  knowledge  may  be  lower  in  degree  than 
we  desire  but  still  it  is  the  kind  of  knowing  that 
brings  us  into  harmony  with  our  eternal  sur- 
roundings, with  the  eternal  God,  and  so  in  its 
nature  it  is  eternal  life.  The  degree  may  be 
increased,  even  here  and  now,  and  must  con- 
stantly grow  in  more  favourable  surroundings. 
We  guard  our  physical  life  against  all  its  foes ; 
so  we  are  to  guard  this  high  life  from  coolness 
of  love  of  God  or  wanderings  from  Him.  We 
feed  our  lower  life  with  sustaining  food;  so  we 
are  to  feed  this  high  life  with  prayer  and  devo- 
tion. We  exercise  our  lower  life  to  keep  it  in 
health  and  win  its  support;  so  we  are  to  exercise 
the  higher  life  by  following  Christ  and  giving 
ourselves  to  His  service.  The  more  we  are 
with  Christ  the  better  and  fuller  will  be  our 
knowing  Him. 

What  shall  we  say  now  of  heaven?  Surely  it 
is  not  simply  prolonged  existence.  Far  more, 
it  is  endless  development  in  knowing  God  in 
Christ.     The  more  we  jrrow  like  Him  the  more 


212  THE  APOSTLES'  CREED 

we  will  know  Him.  God  in  Christ  is  infinite 
in  all  His  perfections  and  eternal  in  His  nature. 
We  will  have  the  eternal  life  begun  now,  and 
passing  through  the  valley  of  death,  in  ever 
growing  power  and  happiness  on  the  uplands 
of  heaven.  This  eternal  life  can  never  be  ex- 
hausted; it  must  constantly  grow  in  knowing 
God.  We  have  the  bud  here,  there  is  the 
flower. 

This  is  the  record  that  God  hath  given  us 
eternal  life,  and  this  life  is  in  His  Son.  To 
trust  Him,  love  Him,  know  Him — this  now  and 
here  is  eternal  life.  It  can  never  die;  it  will 
ever  grow  in  fullness  of  power  and  happiness, 
in  complete  harmony  with  its  eternal  surround- 
ings. 


Printed  in  the  United  States  of  America 


THE  LIFE  OF  CHRIST 


P.  WHITWELL  WILSON     of  the  London  Daily  Neivs 

The  Christ  We  Forget 

A  Life  of  Our  Lord  for  Men  of  To-day.  8vo, 
cloth,  net  $1.50. 

A  book  with  scarcely  a  peer  in  contemporary  publishing. 
The  author,  an  English  University  man,  brilliant  journalist, 
and  sometime  member  of  Parliament,  writes  the  story  of  Jesus 
of  Nazareth  in  a  wonderfully  arresting  fashion.  His  book  is 
utterly  free  from  theological  terminology  or  conventional  view- 
point presenting  a  picture  of  Jesus  which  while  actually  new 
13  astonishingly  convinoing. 

EDGAR  YOUNG  MULLINS,   D.D.  Pres. Southern  Baptist 

■  Theo' 'I  Sem.,  Louisville 


The  Life  in  Christ    Net  $1.25. 

"Dr.  Mullins  has  recognition  throughout  the  country  as  a 
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ing minister,  forcible,  intellectual,  spiritual.'' — Christian  Advo- 
cate. 

FRA  NCIS  E.    CLA  R  K,  D.  D.  President  United  Society 

— — — — — — — — — — ■—  Christian  Endeavor 

Christ  and  the  Young  People 

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the  printed  page.  It  is  indeed  a  remarkable  presentation  of 
the   life  of  Jesus,   sincere  and  impartial." — Zion's  Herald. 

JAMES  M.  GRAY,  D.D.  Dean  Moody  Bible  Institute 

A  Picture  of  the  Resurrection 

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A  plain,  unadorned  examination  of  the  historical  fact  ot 
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the  faith  of  the  Christian  and  of  the  power  its  acceptance 
exercises  in  buttressing  his  belief  in  a  physical  resurrection 
from  the  dead,  and  the  attainment  of  life  eternal. 

A.  T.  ROBERTSON,  M.A.,  D.D. 

The  Divinity  of  Chrisl:  in  the  Gospel 

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Whole  in  detail." — Christian   Observer. 


ON  FAITH  AND  BELIEF 


HENRY  C.   MABIE,    D.D.  Author  of 'Method  of 

■  Soul  H  inning 

The  Unshaken  Kingdom 

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When  Faiths  Flash  Out 

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ADOLPH  LEHMANN,  D.D. 


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place  in  the  development  of  the  Kingdom  of  God. 

DAVID  A.   MURRAY,   D.D.       Author  of ' '  Christian  Faith 

•—^—^———^^— ———'——       and  the  New  Psychology" 

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DAVID  J.  BURRELL,  D.D. 

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ESSAYS  AND  STUDIES 


/■    WILBUR    CHAPMAN,    P.P.  Moderator  of 

— ^— — — ^— — — — ^— ^^— ^— — —  General  Assembly 

When  Home  Is  Heaven 

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His  precepts  extolled, 

WILLIAM  ALLEN  HARPER,  LLP.       President  of  Eton 

"  College,  N.  C. 

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than  to  a  survey  of  methods. 

EPWIN  L.  HOUSE,  P.  P.  Author  of  " The  Psychology 

mm~~— — — — ■ — — ——  of  Orthodoxy" 

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ESSAYS  AND  STUDIES 


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•  nation  of  the  hook 

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WILLIAM  JENNINGS  BRYAN 

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include  the  following:  Money;  Imperialism;  Labor;  Trusts; 
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Doctrines  of  Creation 

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LIGHT  ON  THE  GREAT  WAR 


JAMES  A.  MAC  DONA  LP,  LL.D.        Editor  Toronto  Globe 

The  North  American  Idea 

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.  The  famous  Canadian  editor  enjoys  an  established  and 
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action,  in  the  light  of  its  relation  to  the  Great  World  War. 

EDWARD  LEIGH  PELL,  P.P.         Author  of"  Troublesome 

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Unquestionably  war  is  a  matter  of  conscience  But  in  Dr 
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I  hat  is  why  this  book  does  not  stop  with  clearing  up  trouble- 
some questions. 

ARTHUR  J.   BROWN,  P.P.  Author -of '"Unity and Missions'* 
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R.  A.   TORREY,  P.P.        SupL  Los  Angeles Bible Institute 

The  Voice  of  God  in  the  Present  Hour 

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Perplexed  and  bewildered  by  the  war  conditions  existing  in 
this  and   other  lands. 

JAMES  M.    GRA  Y,  P.  P.  Dean  of  the 

■      Moody  Bible  histitute,  Chicago 

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Chicago,    is    well-known    as    a    Bible    student    and    expositor 

Z3S     nntlre*    •  recistion    throughout    the    Christian 

world.     Dr.  Grey  s  i  I,  tpl        hive  unusual  interest  at  this  time. 


PULPIT  AND  PEW 


PROF.    WILLIAM  J.   HUTCHINS     The  Oberlin  Graduate 
m  School  of  Theology 

The  Preacher's  Ideals  and  Inspirations 

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Point  and  Purpose  in  Preaching 

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JOHN  F.  COWAN,   P.P. 

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JOSEPH  FORT  NEWTON       Pastor  City  Temple,  London 

An  Ambassador 

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HUGH  THOMPSON  KERR,   P.P, 

The  Highway  of  Life 

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something  to  say  of  an  enheartening  character. 


BIBLE  STUDY 


HENRY  T.  SELL,  P.P. 

Bible  Studies  in  the  Four  Gospels: 

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the  ancient  and  modern  world.  m  Suitable  for  use  in  adult 
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private  study. 


ANPREW  W.    BLACKWOOP        Pastor  First  Presbyterian 
—^ — — — — •  Church,  Columbia,  S.  C 

The  Prophets:  Elijah  to  ChrisT: 

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B.    H.    CARROLL,  P.P.  Late  President  Southwestern 

'  '  •  Theological  Seminary 

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Value  which  may  be  set  on  the  work  of  this  accomplished 
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J  A  MES  H.  P  UN  HAM  Dean  of  College  of  Liberal  Arts 

•  and  Sciences,  Philadelphia 

John  Fourteen 

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such  as  are  eminently  suited  to  Young  People's  Conferences, 
are  brought  together  in  attractive  and  useful  form.  Into  these 
brief  addresses,  Dr.  Foulkes  introduces  some  really  choice, 
reverential  thoughts  such  as  cannot  fail  of  proving  helpful  to 
everybody  into  whose  hands  they  come. 

YOUNG  FOLKS*  BIBLE  STORIES 

I.ETTICE    BELL  Author  of'Go-to-Bed  Stories,"  etc. 

Bible  Battles 

Israel's  Victories  Retold  for  Young  Folks.  i2mo, 
cloth,  net  $1.25. 

Commencing  with  the  victories  of  Joshua,  a  stirring  pano- 
rama of  Old  Testament  battle  scenes  is  here  presented.  The 
narratives  are  all  simply  and  effectively  told  in  language  pe» 
culiarly  suited  to  juvenile  readers, 

APA  R.  HABERSHON 

Hidden  Pictures 

Or,  How  the  New  Testament  is  Concealed  in  the 
Old  Testament.    i2tno,  cloth,  net  $1.25. 

In  a  series  of  delightfully-drawn  pictures,  Miss  Habershon 
presents  some  of  the  most  arresting  and  salient  incidents  in 
the  history  of  ancient  Israel.  These  she  employs  to  show  how 
wonderfully  they  foreshadow  and  pre-figure  the  coming  of  Itt> 
tnanuel,   as   related   in  the   Gospels. 


Date  Due 


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